Impending Past
by Tommy's Mistress and TommyIsCancer
Summary: Chapter 11: BlackOnBlack.....The DinoThunder and Wild Force Rangers team up and a lone Psycho Ranger searches to regain a lost power.
1. Reverse Rift

Disclaimer: Power Rangers……all the seasons are not ours. Please don't sue us. We are just doing this for fun and not for money. It is strictly for enjoyment.

Timeline: Oh God….is this going to be a joke throughout the entire fic. Anyway, the fic takes place just as the episode "House of Cards" in DinoThunder is ending. If you haven't seen that episode, do so now. From there, well…..try sorting out the mess.

Authors' notes: TM: I had an interesting idea for a fic and after trying to explain to TiC about it, we decided to go for it. This is fic is based off the PR universe, but as you read, well……you will see what happens. TiC: This fic was very hard to get a handle on to start with but once it was clearly explained to me I was totally on board. I couldn't write at such a high level without TM's careful planning and laying of the groundwork. I'm so proud of how much ground this fic is going to cover. It's quite a ride.

**Impending Past**

**By Tommy's Mistress and TommyIsCancer**

**Chapter 1: Reverse Rift**

Anton Mercer disappeared the invisa-portal that appeared above him leaving behind his adopted son Trent to look back at his fellow DinoThunder Rangers. He looked down, refusing to meet their cold and condemning gaze. Conner, the team leader whose trust he had betrayed, and Dr. Oliver, he teacher and mentor had lost their faith in him. Tommy shook his head in disappointment. Trent hung his head in shame.

"Guys," Trent said, an empty feeling in his gut felt like his stomach was eating itself just to survive. "I can explain."

"I have had it with you and secrets, Trent!" Conner yelled.

"I've had enough of this, I just... I gotta go..." Tommy said very sternly, trying to hold back his bottled up rage. Tommy grabbed his things and bumped Conner as he stormed out of the room. The other four Rangers stared in disbelief as their usually cool headed teacher left in a fit of frustration, the classroom door slamming behind him.

"Why did you hide this from us?" Ethan said as his eyes stared like daggers, turning his anger back at Trent.

"See what you did!" Conner yelled accusingly at Trent.

"Oh god!" Ethan said. "I have never seen him so pissed off like that before."

"Conner! Ethan! Stop!" Kira yelled. "This is getting us no where! We need to give Trent a chance to explain himself. We– YOU owe him that much"

Conner shook his head, not hearing any of it and hauled back, landing a shot with his fist clear on Trent's jaw, buckling his knees and sending him to the floor.

"I knew we never should have trusted you. How many times do you think you can lie to us and get away with it? You're no better than one of your daddy's freakshow monsters."

"Damnit Conner!" Kira stuck her arm out and moved Ethan to the side before letting loose one of her Ptera Screams. Conner covered his ears as the sound overtook him. "Now," she regained her composure, "I think we all need to cool off for a while."

"Fine, whatever," Ethan said. "As long as I don't see Trent for a while." Conner regained his footing. He and Ethan walked angrily out of the room. Trent looked at Kira who in return shook her head at him.

"I'm sorry Trent. You know I care for you and will always give you the benefit of the doubt but right now even I can't trust you." She followed behind the other two out of the room, refusing to look back.

Trent sat alone on the floor for what seemed like an hour, contemplating the events of the last few months. Had he made the right decision in withholding his father's identity? The rangers had no obligation to take him in as one of their own. Anton Mercer had given him the world though. Who did he owe more to? He slowly picked himself up and left the classroom, walking towards Hayley's Cyberspace to try to make heads or tails of everything and find someone with a sound mind that would be willing to hear him out.

Conner instinctively wandered down to the soccer field and began to practice taking some penalty shots. Ethan and Kira halfheartedly watched from the sidelines. Ethan took out his computer and began to amerce himself into his latest game with frustrating results while Kira sat down and pulled out her guitar and strummed a bit, mumbling words as she went.

Tommy sat inside of his jeep, peering over his things. The stack of papers that had to be graded were inconsequential. He sighed, turned the key in the ignition and drove off. On the way home, he took deep breaths, trying to clear his head. At his house, Tommy climbed down the stairs into the basement, expecting Trent to be there sulking or trying to plead his case, but no one, not even Hayley, was there. He went to his chair, sank into it and put his hands to his temples in frustration.

"What is going on?" Tommy murmured to himself. "Anton is Mesogog? How is that possible? And Trent was harboring this information all along? God, why didn't he at least come to me?" He threw himself back into the chair and stared blankly at the ceiling in deep contemplation. "Damn it! I know what it's like not to have your real parents. I thought I had gotten through to him. Maybe I don't really know him at all." Tommy closed his eyes and thought about his experiences as an evil ranger and how his friends brought him back from the edge. Maybe it's us. Maybe it's me. Are we really a team? The guys were friends before they became rangers. These kids on the other hand, were picked from all different walks of life and forced to be a team. But then again, what have I done to really teach them about being a team?" He opened his eyes and sat up in the chair and looked at his desk. "I am sick of this. Sick of the fighting!" He got up and walked over to his lab table. "Maybe if I…"

Trent collapsed into one of the stools at the bar of the Cybercafé. He looked around and as expected, Hayley came over to him.

"Trent? "Are you okay?"She noticed the dried blood from the corner of his mouth and a big red mark on the corner of his jaw.

"No," Trent snapped. He had tears in his eyes. "Dr. Oliver and the others won't trust me ever again!"

"What? What happened?" Trent looked around the café cautiously indicating to her that it was Ranger business. "Okay, in the back. Now." She told one of the other workers to cover the front for her as the two went into the very cluttered backroom. They went to the back corner of the room "What happened?"

"Hayley, my dad….he…" Trent was choking on tears as he tried to get what he wanted to say out. "My father….is….Mesogog…"

"What?" Hayley said in shock. "Are you sure? How did you find this…"

"Hayley." Trent said as he interrupted her. "I knew…from the time…I regained control of the dino gem. My dad is the one that broke the evil hold it had on me. He told me to help the others and to stop Mesogog."

"What?" she said with a hint of anger. "Why didn't you tell us before now?"

"How could I tell them? What? 'My own father is Mesogog!' Conner hit me, Ethan trusted me, even Kira walked out on me and Dr. O doesn't trust me anymore. I couldn't say anything! My father is good…it's just…I was afraid they would…kill him…" She looked at him sternly, but with general concern in her eyes. She hugged Trent closely and whispered words of encouragement.

"Trent, it will be okay," she said. "They are just mad and they have a right to be. You shouldn't have kept this from them. Conner always had issues with trust and Ethan and Kira are just disappointed that you didn't come to them. Tommy understands…but I think he is the most disappointed in you than anything."

"I know," Trent said as he looked at her. "You should have seen his face."

"It's understandable Trent," Hayley said as she pushed him back and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Wait a little while. They need time to cool off. After that, go to the lab and speak to Tommy. He will listen. He just needs time to vent. Now, I have a café to run."

"I hope so, Hayley," Trent said as the two exited the backroom. "I hope so." Trent left the café and started heading for his house. He tried desperately to think about what to do as he walked inside and down to the pond in the backyard. He sat on the bench there and remembered all the things that had happened since he became the White DinoThunder Ranger. The ups and downs, how horrible it felt to be controlled and how freeing it was to regain control and be able to make his own choice on what to do with the power that he had been given. Or was it a curse? Trent picked up his sketchbook and pencil and started drawing the scenery of the pond, trying to wash the pain away. He stopped when he realized that his mind was wandering and the sketch began to include his friends. The Rangers. The team he thought he could call his friends. "Maybe I should have never become a ranger in the first place. It has caused too much pain. I don't deserve their trust," Trent sighed heavily. "I have to do something. I have to make amends."

An amalgamated mass of machinery and building ruins began to stir like an unruly child. Deep from inside a figure made his way through the rumble to get to the heart of it. He looked around to try to gain his bearings. An energy reader in his hand confirmed that he had reached his destination.

"Interesting place," Zeltrax cued as he eyed the location. "I wonder what this trash heap use to be." He kicked a piece of metal with his foot. He was surprised to find part of a console under it. Under the console, Zeltrax could see CDs spilling out from an ajar compartment. He grabbed them up greedily. "Hmmm... Amazing that they survived the blast."

Zeltrax took out a data reader he had in his bag. He put one of the CDs in it and scanned it, revealing a video file. He watched in amazement as he saw the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers on the screen of the scanner and then clenched his free hand in fury as it reminded him of his current problem with DinoThunder Rangers and their mentor, Dr. Oliver. He went on to another file and saw the evil Green Ranger destroying the Command Center.

"Interesting. Looks like the first rangers had their own problems with an unruly member among their ranks. These ruins, they must be the remains of their old headquarters." He enjoyed watching the rangers suffer as the green one created chaos amongst the others. The cries of desperation made his ears perk up with glee. When the green one was revealed to be Tommy when Jason defeated him, Zeltrax was disgusted with the video and threw it to the ground, stepping on it. Seeing Tommy angered him immensely, not to mention the revelation of Dr. Oliver's dark roots. "Damn you Oliver! Is there anything you can't do or isn't handed to you on a silver platter! If I had my druthers, I would grind you out of existence! I'd save everyone from your insufferable interference!" He kicked the reader, creating a clanking noise as it hit a piece of metallic debris. The metal fell over, exposing machinery behind it. "What is this?" Zeltrax paced over, cautiously gaining a handle on exposed instruments. If he had a mouth, a sly grin would have formed on it. He said nothing in his acknowledgment of what it was. "Perhaps my goals are within closer reach than I could have dreamed."

Anton Mercer was fighting a losing battle. No matter how hard he fought, Mesogog always won. His nails grew as his fingers compounded, the large fangs filled his mouth as the rage consumed him. Mercer clutched to the throne in Mesogog's personal chambers, trying desperately to fight of the transformation. The battle was soon lost as Mesogog gained control, leaving Anton as a distant memory. Mesogog peered around, triumphant, taking his place calmly on his throne. He gave a low growl of anger.

"Elsssssa is going to pay dearly for thisssss! That traitorousssss wench!" Mesogog hissed in frustration and slammed his fist into the chair, cracking off the arm of it. He let out another bellow. "I've lossssst my leverage againssssst Mercer's brat! Those infernal rangersssss are to blame! I mussssst remedy this sssssetback. I mussssst eliminate them now." Mesogog's mind began to work at a pace that proved Mercer was still very much a useful part of him. "Ssssspeaking of eliminating…."

The other three rangers were still toiling away at their respective hobbies, using those vices to work through frustration. They didn't speak a word to each other. They all had the same thing on their minds: Trent. An hour had past since the incident although none of them were privy to it. Ethan grew tense watching Conner miss the goal time after time. After the fifth kick in a row feel to the side of the net, he couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop!" Ethan said. "It physically hurts me now just to watch you miss." Conner shot his head around, glaring at him. He picked up the ball, slamming it into his palm. He walked over and slumped down between Kira and Ethan. They hadn't been this tense around each other since happenstance first brought them together.

Kira shook her head in frustration, stuck on the same line of the song she was righting that she had been for the passed twenty minutes. "So now what do we do?"

"There's nothing to do Kira," Conner snipped. "Let Dr. O have his hide. Feed him to the wolves for all I care."

"You're not being fair!" Kira yelled back, refusing to back down.

"We can't trust him. That's the bottom line Kira," Conner abruptly added. "What's next? Maybe he's having an affair with Elsa."

"Eww, Conner!" Kira yelled in disgust. "That's so wrong. I don't want that imagery in my head!"

"You know what he means, as bluntly as he put it," Ethan interjected. "We don't even know where we stand with that guy anymore. How many times does he have to screw you over for you to realize that he's not trustworthy?"

"What's wrong with you Kira?" Conner cried out. "I know you like him but be realistic. You can't actually be defending him still!" He slammed the soccer ball to the ground. "I'm going home. I can't deal with this right now. I always told you guys that we couldn't trust him. But nobody listens to me. I've got the red suit but I guess being the dumb joke trumps that fact." He packed up his book bag while shaking his head. Kira sighed. Conner was hard to talk to when he was mad but he was right. She glanced at Ethan who was putting away his computer.

"Don't look at me, K," Ethan said defensively. "I ain't taking sides here."

Kira rolled her eyes. "Show some backbone Ethan. And Conner? Calm down for once and give people a chance. What is wrong with you two?"

"Me," Conner snapped, "We could have stopped Mesogog months ago! We could have gotten him time and time again while he was Anton but Trent was too concerned about his dad. He's not concerned for us. What if Ethan, Dr. O or I got killed in battle? Would you give Trent the benefit of the doubt THEN?"

Kira recoiled. Usually she would never back down from Conner but his words were like a net, holding her down.

"We stick together! We are a team!" he continued. "Obviously, rich boy doesn't get that because he has been babbling secrets to his dear old dad! I know you still have feelings for him Kira, but you have to face facts! He's a liar!"

Kira slowly moved over to her bag, slung it over her shoulder and grabbed her guitar case. She had to get away from the scathing commentary.

"What? Where are you going? If you're going to Trent, try not to let out anymore secrets. It could get us killed tomorrow!"

Kira spun around towards Conner, freezing him cold. Tears were streaming down her face, running her mascara, cascading it like a rain of bile. She fought the words out of her throat. "I don't know what to believe anymore Conner. My feelings for Trent don't matter. I care about you all. There's no one I'd rather trust my life too then you four guys. To know that any of you would put the rest of us at risk? I'm scared, Conner. Damnit, I'm scared!"

She let out the last cry as her voice trailed off. Conner hung his head in shame. Both of them flinched and then feel in together as Ethan put his arms around both of them.

"Guys," Ethan stammered, "We can't turn on each other. Not now. We need to go to Dr. O's house and talk to him about Trent and if he is there…"

"We'll let him tell his side of the story," Conner gave a sickening look, but then smiled at Kira. "After all," he continued, "Dr. O was there for me when I wanted to quit being a ranger before. I still can't trust Trent, Kira... but he's saved us in the past. He deserves a chance to explain himself."

Kira nodded and smiled, wiping back the tears.

KRA-KOOM!

The earth began to shake beneath the teens. Kira's hands snapped out before her as she was thrown to ground. Conner leaned down to help her up. An explosion echoed around them. The sound came from the other side of town. The rangers looked up, noticing a huge white dome that was spreading over the city rapidly, creating what appeared to be a colossal snow globe.

"What the heck is that?" Kira cried out. The dome was approaching their location.

"Oh shit!" Conner screamed, knowing it was too late. They were powerless to stop it. The dome engulfed them. Darkness.

-------

The sound of his alarm clock buzzed in the back of Conner's head. He groaned, rolling over in his bed, slamming the button with his fist. "6 a.m. Damn." He crawled out of the messy sheets, leaving it for later as he stumbled downstairs, careful to avoid the broken out step, and made his way through the hallway in his worn boxers and into his family's kitchen. He pulled up a seat at the table were his twin brother, Eric, was half asleep chomping on some stale cereal. Conner sighed and dragged himself to the cupboard, grabbing a cracked bowl from the broken down shelves and made his way back to the table.

"Mom and Dad go already?" Conner mumbled. He grabbed the cereal box that Eric had sat next to his glass of orange juice.

"Yeah," Eric said. "Mesogog summoned them early for some sort of special project. You know how he has it when someone is late. I saw bruises on dad's arms and back when he came home late the other night."

"Seriously?" Conner choked our. "Dad didn't tell me that."

"He didn't want either of us to see it and worry. Apparently he brought Mesogog the wrong purple liquid for something and he got thrown across the room."

"Oh, God," Conner winced. He carefully took another bite of his food.

"Yeah," Eric said, getting worked up,. "And the bastard White Ranger has been running random patrols of the area, keeping all of us in line! I hate it. It's like a damned prison."

"Shhhh!" Conner whispered loudly with a horrified look on his face. "You can't say stuff like that! Do you want the neighbors to hear?"

"Sorry," Eric remembered. "I'm just so sick of it."

"I know, me too," Conner nodded. "Me too."

Conner and Eric finished their breakfast, sitting their poor cracked dishes in the sink.

"Let's go," Eric sighed, "Dr. Payne is going to kill us for being late as it is."


	2. Transmission

Disclaimer: Power Rangers is not ours and we are doing this for enjoyment not profit. The Power Rangers belong to Disney.

Authors' Comments: yet? Hee hee. You will be!

**Impending Past**

**Chapter 2: Transmission**

Twin brothers Conner and Eric McKnight quietly slumped into the seats of bus to Mesogog High School system's Reefside, California division. They tried to sneak into their first period class, Identifying Fossils with their paleontologist teacher, Dr. Edward Payne. Payne brushed his hand through his dull blonde hair that he was cut neat and short in frustration as the boys walked in. He eyed them in exasperation over the top of his glasses through his piercing brown eyes.

"McKnights! Take your seats " he bellowed with a voice that seemed far too commanding for his slender frame. "Everyone take out your equipment kits. We will be traveling to Mesogog's latest excavation site today for field work." The class groaned. Conner dreaded this class for reasons just like this. What was the point of identifying dinosaurs bones? The dead thing is still dead. "Class! It doesn't matter if you don't like field work, but when the Master demands our help, we can't turn it down."

Ethan James nervously pushed his books into his backpack and adjusted his black-framed glasses; disappointment filled his face. The thought of having to physically dig into the dirt and mud instead of staying in the calm confines of the classroom. He hung his head down and took a big gulp, nervously lagging back behind the rest of the class.

"Okay, let's get going today people " The class gathered in the front of the classroom as an invisa-portal appeared. Payne ushered them all though the portal while taking a head count, Ethan being the last person before he brought up the rear. The slow rush of air and green flash that always churned Conner's stomach hit him again. He blinked and wobbled, being taken aback as the next image around him was the outskirts of Reefside at the edge of the Ranru Forest. Payne led the class along a trail that went deep into the trees. Edward winced as the figure of a woman running towards them became more visible.

"Edward Payne! You're late!" the woman sternly cried. She was an attractive woman in her mid 20s with long dark red hair. She looked worried. "Master Mesogog is infuriated at you for being late Do you know what that means? When he's angry at you, he's angry at me, and when he's angry at me, I am angry at YOU!"

"I know. I'm sorry Hayley. I was waiting on a couple of kids," Edward was exasperated. "Come along class, quickly!" Sensing the desperate tone in their instructor's voice, the class began to pick up pace as they got further into the woods until they came upon the reptilian beast himself.

Payne motioned for the children to stay back as he cautiously stepped forward, willing to take whatever punishment was meant for the class as a whole. "Lord Mesogog, I'm so sorry that we are late. I take full responsibility for... AUGH!" Mesogog's claw quickly snatched up Dr. Payne by the neck with it's vice like grip. He casually tossed Payne to the ground. He paced around Payne, like a vulture circling it's prey.

"Do I look like a creature of patience, Payne? I do NOT tolerate lateness!" Mesogog got his face next to Dr. Payne's, snorting hot, stinking breath out of his nostrils. "If you are late again, I will not be ssssso generousssss. You pathetic humansssss are not worth sssssuch benevolence!"

"Yee…yes sir " Edward stammered.

"Now, Payne," Mesogog continued while Edward slowly picked himself up and stood in front of his class, "You are your ssssstudents will ssssstart digging in the location that my assisssssstant Hayley has roped off. I expect that you have properly trained them in that ssssschool to identify dinosssssaur bones and other fosssssils. Put your pitiful human minds to ussssse and identity your findingsssss. Anything suspiciousssss getsssss reported directly to me."

"Question!" came a yell from the back of the ground. Ethan slapped his hand over his mouth when everyone turned their attention towards him. Mesogog peered at the boy. Ethan felt trapped as he powered through the rest of his thought. "Um, why are we, um…digging them up…anyway?"

The reptile moved through the crowd of students that was all to willing to part like the Red Sea as he marched up to the teenager. He lent over Ethan, his razor fangs shining so brilliantly that Ethan would have seen his own reflection in them if he could have mustered the courage to look. "Sssssince when were quessssstions about my direct ordersssss allowed, child?" Ethan gulped. Mesogog turned around, sufficiently pleased with the fear he had imposed. "The specificsssss of my planssss to resssssurrect the dinosaursssss that rightfully ssssshould rule the Earth are none of your concern. You retrieve the bonesssss, and I shall harvessssst the DNA."

"As if we needed anymore dinosaurs around here," Eric mumbled under his breath.

A visceral help rang through Conner and Eric's ears. They snapped their heads around to see Mesogog grabbed his arm. He cried in pain as the smoke dissipated from around the wound. "Who dares attack me? " he snarled.

"That would be me, you scaly bastard " a feminine voice sounded out confidently, revealing herself from the woods, a gun drawn and aimed at Mesogog's head. Her short brown hair was lined with blonde highlights. A black hoodie with yellow pentagram hid her form. She flicked a cigarette with her free hand, managed a grin but never lost her bead on Mesogog.

"Since I don't have a mayonnaise jar big enough to hold you... I guess I'll just have to kill you instead."

Mesogog looked more annoyed than actually frightened. "You actually plan to kill me?" Mesogog laughed. "Better people than you have tried over and over. What makesssss you think you're any different?"

"Shut your mouth you sadistic bastard " The girl walked in closer to Mesogog. She held the gun steady, still trained on his head. "You terrorize innocent people Life is not a game for you to play with as you see fit! Kylee was my best friend and you tortured her and stole her life! You and your damned White Ranger!"

"Sssssorry, I kill ssssso many humansssss. I can't remember one insignificant one from all the other meatbagsssss. But ssssspeaking off the White Ranger…" Mesogog grinned slyly. The girl's eyes bugged out, she knew it was already too late. A blinding streak of white light crashed into her back. The White Drago Ranger's sword cut into her back, sending pain coursing through ever vein. She fought to stand up but dropped to her hands and knees. The tears from her eyes and blood from her back dripped onto the ground, congealing into a pool. The White Ranger quickly snatched her up by the hair, pinned her arms back in place, and maneuvered her next to his master. Mesogog leaned in. "Little girl, did you really think, that you could get this clossssse to me without me allowing it? You will be made an example of to all thossssse who dare to crossssss me."

Eric bit his lip. He and Conner looked at the helpless girl. After taking the shot she did she was still struggling for all her worth. But what was the point? Conner was questioning the stupidity of the girl for attacking Mesogog like that in broad daylight. Conner's eyes darted to the side. There was a noise in the bushes. By the looks on everyone else's faces, their eyes still glued to the girl, they hadn't noticed. He spotted two teenagers, a girl with blonde hair and a boy with brunette hair. The boy had a camera in his hand. Conner nodded slightly in recognition. They were runaways from school who got caught last month stealing supplies from the AV room. Cassidy Cornell and Devin DeValle. Cassidy's face was etched in worriment. Conner concluded that the resistence never really had much of a chance if everyone that was part of it acted like them. They were carelessly attacking at inopportune times and the forces weren't strongenough. Why bother when you can't make so much as a dent? These two were probably following the girl, hoping to report back good news. Did they really think one attack on Mesogog by a lone girl would do the trick?

"Terrance Smith!" Mesogog snapped his jaw. Another slender man came running up. He looked to be about the same age as Dr. Payne. His good looks were concealed by his messy hair and dirt-smeared face. On top of that, Terrance had a metal arm and leg on one side of his body, possibly the result of some sort of explosion. He looked like he didn't know the meaning of the word sleep.

"Yes,… my lord?" Terrance stammered with a hasty breath.

"Take this pathetic little female to my lab. Ssssshe looks like the ideal tessssst subject for the new lassssser drill prototype." The girl's eyes widened in fear as the White Ranger forced the gun out of her hand. She screamed and yelled as the Ranger took her away.

"Right away, sir." Terrance regretted such an order as he shamefully agreed and turned around to walk with the Ranger and the overly zealous girl.

"Now, before I wasssss so rudely interrupted," Mesogog hissed as he turned to the students. "Begin your dig, humansssss. Elsssssa will be watching your every move. I expect productivity."

The woman that stepped forward was familiar to the class. She always accompanied Mesogog where ever he went. Rumors flew about that they were in some sort of disgusting romance. She looked like something straight out of gothika. A tight, black leather outfit covered most of her frame. Thick, dark markup lined her eyes and lips as her raven-colored hair was in rows and tied behind her head. The only color came from the red holster of her sword. Her hand was always on the hilt of it, ready to dole out punishment as she saw fit.

"Get to work!" she spit out. The students jumped and quickly spread out over the marked area and began to dig away at the rock with their standard issue dig kits and shovels that were given to them by tyrannodrones who surrounded the area. Hours wore by as Dr. Payne and his class continued the tedious work, only stopped to examine any possible finds. After three hours Elsa examined her watch and nodded to Payne.

"Okay guys," Edward clapped his hands, getting everyone's attention. "We've got a thirty minute break. Don't leave the designated area."

Conner wiped his brow as he slumped under a nearby shade tree next to his brother who collapsed on his back.

"MAN!" Eric said. "Why do we have to do this?"

"Because Mesogog commands it and I don't want to cause trouble. You saw what happened to that girl," Conner snapped in a hushed voice.

"That was a rhetorical question Conner. Geez, why are you acting like such a pansy?"

Ethan was looking around at all the students who had grouped off into their own little cliques. Alone, he casually took a seat a few feet away from the twins who seemed to be the least opposing and began to instant message some of his online friends.

Eric sighed, looking for anything to take his frustration out on. "And what are you up to, nerd?" Ethan peered up at Eric who was standing over Ethan's shoulder. He quickly darted his attention back to the monitor, hoping he would go away. Conner shook his head. He didn't understand why his brother was so confrontational. Ethan wasn't exactly Conner's best friend but he didn't deserve to be treated like that just because Eric was mad. But there was something different about Ethan. Why did this one kid seem so important?

"Back to work " a high-pitched, shrill scream rang through the kids' ears. Elsa sneered as groans filled the site. Conner pulled Eric away from Ethan back to the site. Ethan quickly packed up his computer and followed a safe distance behind them. Dr. Payne motioned for the three boys to hurry up.

"McKnights, James!" he sternly stated while peering over his glasses, "Since you three don't understand the value of being prompt, you have all volunteered for a special dig on the far side of the quarry. I expect you back her on schedule or you will be left behind."

"What?" Eric protested. "Come on Dr. Payne. We don't need that geek hanging around us. He'll just slow us down."

"Eric!" Conner let out a muffled yell while elbowing him in the side.

"Both of you stop it!" Payne snapped. "Next time you'll learn how to be prompt. I don't want to hear any complaining out of you. If you draw attention to us Elsa will not be as forgiving as I would. You saw what happened to that girl. This isn't a game. Do I make myself clear?" Both brothers nodded. Ethan just starred at the ground. "Good! Now get to work. No more fighting."

The three boys picked up their tools and followed the trail to the other edge of the dig site. There weren't any tyrannodrones guarding it and Elsa was nowhere to be seen. "Great." Eric dragged his shovel behind him. "Thanks a lot Ethan. This is just what I needed."

"Shut up, Eric!" Conner snapped. "This was your fault. You didn't have to pick on him and make us late. I don't like this either but don't take it out on other people."

"Sorry…" Ethan murmured. "People just…don't like me."

Eric shook his head and let out a frustrated sign as he slammed the end of his shovel into the ground of the new dig area. A loud clang reverberated threw the handle and shook Eric's hands.

"I hit something guys."

"Careful!" Ethan cried out. "It could be a fossil!"

"I don't think so..." Eric trailed off as he began to dig around the area with his bare hands. "It felt like metal. Help me."

Conner and Ethan dropped to there knees and began to carefully dig around the object. As the dirt was moved away they slowly revealed a small, circular black dome with a silver border around it and engravings all around the outer edge. It wasn't in English or at least any variation that they knew about. Next to device, which Eric could only describe as a black snow globe, was a small rectangular device. A small monitor flipped open to reveal a cascade of buttons. Ethan likened it to a miniature laptop but the design and layout was foreign to him.

"What is that?" Eric asked. "Hey, Ethan. You're the computer expert. Any idea what is could be?"

Ethan snatched the two objects from Eric's hands. "I really am not sure. I've never seen these designs before in any of my hardware catalogs." As he was fidgeting with the black domed it popped open.

"Did you break it?" Conner was in a fever but he calmed down as the machine turned on by itself and a projection of a girl with long brown hair and a white jumpsuit appeared.

"Wow! A hologram!" exclaimed Ethan.

"Wow! ...she hot," cooed Eric.

Before Eric could go on and Conner had a chance to yell at him again, the woman began to speak. "If you are viewing this, then something has gone wrong with history. It is up to you and the Infinital Sequencer to use this record of the history of the Power Ranger to restore order."

"I like her. The strict ones always make for the most fun. You know that Elsa..."

"Shut up!" Ethan and Conner both yelled. Ethan looked back at the message, his mind was racing. "Something's wrong with history..."

"Power Rangers," Eric scoffed. "Every Power Ranger that I know of is a bastard. All the good ones died after the Lightspeed team fell to Emperor Zordon. Who cares about their history?"

"Eric! Did you not pay attention?" Conner snapped. "She said history is wrong. We have no idea what the real Power Rangers are supposed to be like."

"Sorry Conner, why don't you go tell that to the girl the White Ranger slashed in the back. I'm sure she'll be very understan–"

"My name Jen Scotts," the transmission continued, "I am the Pink Ranger and leader of the Time Force Rangers. This is coming to you from the year 3003. This is a record of the proper time stream that has led to my present day. From the year 1993 with the original Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers to the DinoThunder Rangers of 2004. We believe that somewhere between these years a break in time has occurred. The exact source of it is unknown. I leave it in your hands to get the Infinital Sequencer to the Power Rangers or your time so that they can set the timeline straight."

"Thank God she's pretty," Eric sneered, "Because she sure can talk."

The others weren't listening to him. "Ethan," Conner questioned, "Can you show us the current year? I want to see what it says about Mesogog."

"Yeah, I think so. This dial looks like I can set the year. He turned it to 2004. The hologram immediately clicked into play mode again.

"In the year 2004 a new team of Power Rangers was formed. Under the guidance of a veteran ranger..."

Ethan snapped the dome shut, closing the holographic program.

"Hey!" the twins protested. "What did you do that for?"

"I just realized, if anyone sees this here, they're going to confiscate it from us and we won't be able to do anything," Ethan warned. Eric and Conner nodded in agreement.

"But what can we do with it?" Eric asked. "Like I said, the only Power Rangers that are still around are part of Zordon's empire. Why would they want to change history? There's no way we would get the devices back from them."

"Right," Conner agreed. "Ethan, can we meet you somewhere after class?"

"Why not our house?" suggested Eric. "Mom and dad won't be home tonight."

Conner wrote down their home address on a slip of paper and handed it to Ethan.

"And, Ethan," Eric stammered. "Sorry about calling you a geek early."

Ethan smiled as he put the two objects into his pockets and the three went back to work for the rest of the class period.

---

That evening there was a sharp knock at the door of the McKnights. Conner opened it quickly, having been pacing around for hours.

"Sorry I'm late guys. My mom wouldn't let me leave. I told her I'd be back by curfew." He pulled the devices out of his backpack and opened the holographic dome. The file began to play from where it have last left off.

"Under the guidance of a veteran ranger, a new five-person team was formed," Jen's voice began the monologue.

"Five? " they all cried out simultaneously. "There's supposed to be a full team?" Eric groaned.

"But," Conner questioned while glaring at the image of the five rangers in the hologram. "If there are supposed to be five DinoThunders, then does this mean that our timeline is wrong like this Jen woman suggested?"

"I don't know," Ethan said. "But if it says that the White Ranger was the first one on this team then our timeline could still be the correct one."

"Then let's keep going."

The video file cut to footage of a man dressed in black running through a forest while a group of tyrannodrones chased him. Jen's voice talked as the video played.

"The villainous Mesogog had plans to revert the Earth to it's prehistoric past. To do so, he first tried to acquire three powerful Dino Gems. Fortunately for the people of Earth, a paleontologist and former Power Ranger, Dr. Tommy Oliver already has possession of the gems. He barely managed to escape Mesogog's initial attack."

The scene cut to Reefside High School. The three boys didn't say a word. They all were thinking that to this point, the history seemed to line up fine.

"Dr. Oliver, believing Mesogog to be lost in an island explosion tried to settle down as a high school science teacher in Reefside, California. It is here where the Dino Gems were born and Dr. Oliver wanted to maintain surveillance. Three teenagers, on an excursion with Dr. Oliver, found the gems. The gems bonded to them, empowering them with both civilian powers, and those of a Power Ranger." The screen flashed images of Kira, Conner and Ethan.

"That's us " Ethan yelled, slapping Conner on the shoulder who was in wide-eyed disbelief.

"Guys," Eric was pointing to the screen, "That girl... she's the one the White Ranger attacked today, only with longer hair. It has to be her."

The transmission continued as their reactions had no bearing to its programming. "Thanks to Dr. Oliver's technology fused with the Dino Gem's abilities, the three teenagers were able to morph into the DinoThunder Rangers. Conner McKnight: the Red Tyranno Ranger, Ethan James: the Blue Tricera Ranger and Kira Ford: the Yellow Ptera Ranger."

"Whoa " Ethan said as he paused the video file. "That's not possible! How can that be the right timeline?"

"Ethan!" Conner was jumping up and down in excitement. "We are the Power Rangers! We're supposed to fight against Mesogog!"

"The more important fact is that this means for sure that our time isn't the correct one," Ethan paced around the room. "This Dr. Oliver is the key. I've never even heard of him."

"Dr. Oliver, after later bonding with a forth Dino Gem, become the Black Brachio Ranger. Together, the four rangers fought against Mesogog and his forces. Mesogog's human form was that of Dr. Oliver's former partner, Anton Mercer. Chief among his army were Elsa, a woman whose secret identity served as principal of Reefside High School and Zeltrax, who used to be known as the human Terrance Smith."

"Wait, Zeltrax is Terrance Smith? Isn't he that guy that Mesogog had taken Kira away today?" Ethan inquired.

"Don't worry about it for now, let's keep going," implored Conner.

"Trent Fernandez, the adopted child of Anton Mercer happened upon a fifth Dino Gem that, when bonded to him against his will, gave him the powers of the White Drago Ranger. The gem's inherent evil nature controlled Trent, making him an enemy to the other rangers."

"Wait " Eric yelled. "Trent Fernandez is the White Ranger? He's in our class. Come to think of it, I never saw him in class but he was at the dig site."

"Guys, let's be fair," reasoned Conner. "How do we know that Trent is the White Ranger in THIS timeline?"

"It's possible that it's not him," Ethan said. "But the girl did say that the gems choose the owner. I'm thinking that they would still choose the same people, regardless of the timeline."

"Do you think that Mesogog is still trying to find then in our time?" Conner asked.

"He might. Let's finish the file."

"Thanks to Anton Mercer, the White Ranger was freed from the gem's control. Trent joined the other DinoThunder Rangers, helping them to defeat Mesogog. End transmission."

"Mesogog gets defeated in that timeline!" Eric sang happily.

"But to do that we need to first find this Dr. Oliver," Conner said, cutting down the jubilation. "Ethan, is there anything online about him?"

Ethan took his computer and started typing, shaking his head in frustration with every new dead lead.. "I can't find anything on him. No files on him at Reefside or anywhere. It's like he doesn't even exist."

"Then we need to figure this out on our own," Conner said. "We looked so much happier in that timeline."

"Where was I though?" Eric asked. "It didn't show me."

"I don't think that it would," Ethan said. "This is only information on the rangers."

"Let's go back to the dig site." The other two boys reluctantly nodded at Conner. "At this point, it's the only real lead we have. There shouldn't be too many guards at night."

---

From a distance the three boys could see spotlights peppering the dull, dark sky like fireflies. Conner motioned for the others to stay back and remain along the edge of the woods to safely see what was going on without being seen themselves. In front of them stood the regular line of command with Mesogog at the front and Elsa by his side. Terrance Smith was off to one area making tallies on a clipboard while tyrannodrones dug away at rock. One of the tyrannodrones began to groan as he picked something off the ground and rushed it over to Mesogog's outstretched claw. A beautiful tingling noise echoed. Three distinct lights were shining as one.

"Excellent! The lassssst one!"

Conner, Eric and Ethan glanced to one another. There was no mistaking the red, blue, and yellow hues that permeated the surrounding area. Mesogog had found the Dino Gems.

**To be continued...**


	3. Insurrection

Disclaimer……oh, you know the drill! Anything not ours belongs to their respective owners.

Authors' Note: TIC: For those of you who have stuck through all the build up, after this chapter get ready for a lot more action. Things have barely begun and you can expect the suspense only to build from here. insert another tag line to sell the story here

Impending Past

Chapter 3: Insurrection

1Eric McKnight had a twin brother. It's usually said that twins are very similar and they always stick together, sharing every experience as a child. The problem is that later in life they tend to resent one another. If one gets something that the other doesn't, you can bet their parents will never hear the end of it. Maybe one got more attention at times, an extra toy, the better color shirt. It's not often that you can complain because your brother is supposed to be a super hero, defending the Earth while you don't even get so much as a footnote.

The evil, reptilian cackle of the monstrous lizard brought Eric back to his senses. The primary colored gems glowed in his hands. Both Conner and Ethan appeared dejected.

"Those are the gems from the video, are they?" Eric whispered rhetorically, just looking for any communication from the others as a sign of comfort.

"With those, he can…" Ethan stammered.

"Do anything he pleases," Conner finished. The holographic dome that was still in Ethan's hand met Conner's gaze. What good was it now? Getting those gems before Mesogog was the only trump card they could have played. All the crap Conner had been through, the pain of seeing his parents come home every night exhausted and beaten to a house that was always in shambles. Not to mention the misery that he and his friends had suffered at the hands of Mesogog and his minions. Conner looked determinedly at Mesogog and then at Ethan and Eric. "We need to get those gems."

"What?" Ethan and Eric began to cry out before calming their voices.

"There is no way we can get those gems from him! It's suicide!" Eric was usually the more irrational of the two but even he couldn't believe the sort of trigger happy, emotionally charged action was coming from his brother.

Conner snatched the holo-dome from Ethans's hands. "If we want to fix this timeline," Conner said as he pointed to it, "then we need to get those gems. We need to become Rangers."

"Getting those gems won't fix the timeline!" Ethan protested. "We would still have to go back in time to do that!"

"That's why we are using this," Conner said as he took the Infinital Sequencer out of Ethan's jacket pocket. "The first device told us what to do. I'm willing to bet that this other one is what will allow us to time travel."

"Well, it looks like it has the capacity for it and it makes sense," Ethan concurred. "We still have to retrieve that Kira girl. If she is supposed to be a Ranger as well than we need her to come along with us. The three of us need to be together."

"Then you guys will need help," came the other voice from behind them. Ethan and Conner looked at Eric with sympathetic eyes. In the heat of their conversation, both had forgotten about him.

"What do you have in mind?" Conner was trying to lend a careful ear to his brother.

Eric signed as he eyed both of them. "I'm going to take you guys to the Resistance base. They – we, can help."

"'We?' You're part of the resistance?" Ethan questioned with a serious yet sincerely concerned expression. "What about what happened today? Do you know Kira?"

"Not specifically. Guys, I think we can help you get close enough to Mesogog to get those gems so we can at least try to fix this mess," Eric began to walk away from the dig site, motioning for the others to follow. "Are you coming?" Ethan and Conner looked at each other and shrugged as they began to follow.

About fifty yards away from where the kids had been hiding and spying on Mesogog, two shadowy figures had been, unbeknownst to the kids, watching them. Dr. Edward Payne and Terrance Smith waited until they were out of sight before standing up following the shocking conversation they had overheard.

"Well, it looks like you were right to bring me over here from the dig," Terrance grimaced.

Payne nodded with concern. "That device, they said it could help them travel through time. Free reign like that could really disturb Master Mesogog's plans. He won't be pleased. To think that there is a possibility that all of this isn't even supposed to exist. We can't let them disturb his plans."

"I know," Terrance murmured while the frustration was visible on his face, even in the dark the beads of sweat glimmered on the moonlight. "Mesogog must guard those gems better. They may just be kids but if they get a hold of them, who knows what position that will leave us in? Let's keep an eye on them. If we can figure out how that device works and bring them in we can avert a problem and cur a lot of favor from the master."

-----------

About an hour later, the teens arrived at a rock formation in a small open clearing at the edge of Ranru Forest on the north end of Reefside. At first glance this appeared to be like any other open space in the forest. Upon further examination there were subtle nuances about it. Swamp area was in just the right place so that it would require a lot of effort to get up close to the rock. Trees that were down seemed almost strategically placed in the paths of least resistance. You wouldn't be able to notice easily, but if one didn't know better, you could swear that someone was trying to keep onlookers away from the area.

Eric moved his hand quickly along certain parts of the rock, never stopping, knowing just what he was doing as if he was a blind man reading his favorite brail book for the hundredth time with a ting of excitement when he knew that he had hit his mark. Sliding a small boulder up and over was the last piece of the puzzle. Faint muffles could be heard from inside the rock. Eric's brother along with their unlikely ally gave each other uneasy glances, trying to read if the other knew something that they didn't. How can someone be inside the rock and how could they possibly hear them?

Their questions were answered as a wall of the sediment slide to the side. No opening had been detectable to the eye before. Eric motioned the others to follow who, bearing in mind the last couple of days, had become dead to the concept of surprise.

The inside of the bluff seemed like a well-stocked refuge camp for teenagers. A few adults mulled around as well but everyone seemed to be treating each other as equals. The technology in the place was decent, nothing nearly as impressive as the images from Mesogog's lair, but comparable to anything Ethan had every seen. Holding himself back with a wide-eyed grin as if he had just woken up from a long slumber with a coat hanger in his mouth, he surveyed the area.

"Stand aside everyone," a girl stated in an authoritative but oddly familiar voice. "Eric!" Her toned dropped for a second to a squeal. Ethan was familiar with Cassidy Cornell who was followed closely behind by Devin DeValle. "It's great to see you." She quickly regained her composure. "But what are you doing they doing here?" She pointed an accusatory finger towards the other two boys.

"Cassidy?" Conner questioned, not letting his brother voice a response. "I saw you in the bushes today. What is this place? Eric said he was taking us to the resistance base. Its just more kids? No offense, but what kind of offensive is this?"

Devin bowed his head, muttering something about being right that someone had spotted them. He blamed himself.

"Devin! Please be quiet," Cassidy snapped. She winced for a second knowing that she was just taking out her disgust for Conner's cutting comments on her friend, knowing that he wouldn't fight back. "Eric!" she whipped back around to the twin she knew and could control. "Why are you bringing your brother and Ethan James here? I know he's your family but that doesn't mean you can trust him. They are Mesogog supporters."

"Hey!" Conner butted in again, making Cassidy's lip curl. "I have no desire to stay under the thumb of that scaly bastard. We're just looking for a few gems that were unearthed today."

"Gems?" Cassidy questioned. "I seem to recall seeing some gems. What about them is peeking your interest?"

"The powers," Ethan stammered out loudly before he could contain himself. All whispers in the room died and dozens of eyes were suddenly locked on the third member of the party. Ethan didn't have to look. He could feel them on him like leeches. "They have... ranger powers..." he finished, wishing he hadn't.

"So let me get this straight Eric," Cassidy fumed. "You've brought your brother and some squirrelly little busybody into the base all for the sake of running a suicide mission to get ranger powers? Do you honestly expect us to use out resources to create more evil troops for Mesogog? We need to contain all of you." Cassidy narrowed her eyes and shook her head in disappointment at her one time comrade. "Take them away."

Some of the larger teenagers and adults each grabbed one of the arms of the three kids. Eric struggled, yelling at his friend. "We can change time and put an end to Mesogog and Zordon's terror! Stuff your pride and hard exterior for one second and LISTEN!"

Ethan wasn't putting up much resistance and was being strong-armed. One of the men frisked him and pulled out the holo-dome. In a moment of brazen attitude, Ethan lunged forward and turned the device on before being shoved to the ground. The same recording the three teens had viewed before began to play again from the start. The men relaxed their grip on the teens as their guts began to tense up at the sights the globe showed. Jennifer Scotts' report painted a picture of hope.

"Eric..." Cassidy called out quietly. "...what is this?"

Eric gulped and slowly paced over to Cassidy, placing his hands on her shoulders, letting her rest her head in his chest. "It's what I said it was Cass. It's another time. It's a time where there is hope and were we're allowed to dream and live in freedom."

"It's paradise," she finished. Cassidy shuck her head, coming back from whatever blissful state she had fallen to. "I need to tell the boss about this."

"You aren't running this operation?" questioned Ethan, amazed that with her tone there could be someone higher than her.

"No, Ethan." Cassidy turned to the others. "Our boss is in deep cover at Mesogog's lab. He makes this whole thing possible, sending us surveillance and layouts so we can make our surgical strikes on Mesogog's operations."

"Ma'am! Something has happened!" A red-haired girl cried out as she worked her way through the crowd. Conner knew her well. Krista was a quaint girl from his class. He sat behind her everyday getting lost in the scent of her hair. She smelled like a combination of a fine morning dew and lavender. It was an intoxicating natural aroma. Seeing her so open and in such a technical structure seemed so out of character for this girl.

"We've gotten word from the boss. Mesogog has apparently finished building some sort of transmutation ray. If he's right, then Mesogog will be able to harness those gems. Their powers levels are off the charts."

Cassidy and Devin whipped around, eyeballing Ethan again. "You were right... Okay troops. I'm going to form a party to sneak into the base. We need to retrieve those gems now."

"I'm going," Conner snapped.

"You? I am sick and tired of you questioning me, Conner McKnight. You are not cut out for this. You have no training."

"Cass," Devin nudged her on the shoulder and leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Can't you see how passionate they are about this? It's not fair to hold them back. Plus if that thing they have is the real deal, then they could actually help us win the war by setting things back to how they should be. You know how powerful the White Ranger is. Having three rangers of our own could turn the tide." Cassidy was taken aback. Devin never spoke up to her unless he was truly concerned about something. She turned her eyes to Eric, Conner and Ethan. They had a fire in their eyes that hadn't seen in anyone since Kira. She nodded at Devin and then the others.

"Okay, then follow me," she eyed the boys. Conner and Ethan lit up, immediately stone facing as Eric slapped them on the shoulders and ushered them forward followed by, Devin, Krista and Cassidy. A set of winding stairs led upwards. The old, crusty paint on the railing reminded Conner of his house, instilling very little faith in him. As the group entered from an underground passage and into a filthy room with tattered boxes everywhere a tingling sense of familiarity hit Ethan.

"Conner!" he said. "Doesn't this place look familiar to you?"

"Yeah, it feels like I've been here before."

"Guys..." Eric began to trail off before snapping back, "It looks like the same cave and house from the recording. I think that in the other reality, this was supposed to be that Dr. Oliver's house." Conner and Ethan looked at each other and nodded. The six teens exited the house after Cassidy looked around and confirmed that everything was clear. They quickly paced a few dozen yards until they reached a secure clearing. Devin explained to the others that Mesogog's security combed most lines of intel and as a result the safest form of contact was through a scrambled cell phone signal. Cassidy began to dial while Devin talked about the intricacies of their underground system.

"Boss?" Cassidy cautiously began. "We heard about the…uh…Yeah, they're right here, but how did you…I see. Do you believe that thing?...Okay.." A few minutes passed by, aggravating Eric to no end.

"Who is your boss anyway?" Ethan questioned Krista, "Is it anyone we would actually know?"

Cassidy quickly hung up the phone and speed dialed another number. Conner groaned along with his brother. "NOW who are you calling?" Conner said aggravated. "We're wasting time!"

Eric leaned in next to his brother. "She should be calling the base. I've never seen her make another call right after talking to the boss unless something big was going down."

"Guys," Cassidy interrupted them. Her cold blue eyes locked on both Devin and Krista. "It's time. Initiate Operation: Extinct."

"Huh? What does that mean?" Ethan sensed the serious tone.

"It means..." Eric nodded at Cassidy, "...that we're going in. It's time for a full frontal assault."

"Are you joking?" Ethan gave a nervous laugh. "Your boss told us to attack Mesogog's lab? With what forces? I thought we were going to sneak in. This is suicide."

"I understand your concern Ethan," Cassidy grinned. "I should rephrase myself. The six of us are sneaking in to get Kira and the gems with the rest of the forces are attacking from the front."

"But the rest of the forces is only about thirty people in that cave," implored Ethan.

"Those people are the generals of larger squads," Devin tried to put the others at ease.. "We have many more members."

"There's something else," Cassidy interrupted. "The boss said that one of Mesogog's right hand men knows about those devices you have. That means that Mesogog will know soon enough."

"Then we have to work fast," Conner commanded. The others nodded.

"We have to rescue Kira too," Krista spoke up. "All she wanted to do was fight for Kylee. She was her best friend. That bastard Mesogog turned Kylee into one of his – his, creatures," she choked through the tears. "By the time we managed to finally take down the beast he turned her into, Kira had to finally strike her down. She didn't even know... it devastated her to find out that the monster was Kylee."

The cell rang, giving Cassidy the go signal she had been waiting for. "Got it," she said with no more than a nod and snapped the phone shut. "That was the boss. He's going to open up an invis-portal from the other side. We jump through together as quickly as possible. Understood?" The other five nodded. As if on cue, the invisa-portal appeared directly in front of them. "It's now or never guys. See you on the other side." With that ominous tone, the six teenagers simultaneously passed through the green hued portal.

One thought passed through all of their minds, sharing in the same doubts. No matter awaited them on the other side, failure was not an option.

To be continued…


	4. Double Disclosure

Disclaimer: You should know this already. Fanfiction is based on a show already written and all the characters and things belong to their respective holders. In this case, Power Rangers….Disney.

Authors' note: We are happy that everyone is liking this so much. TM: I would like to give a big thanks to Jer (TIC) for doing such a great job. He does a lot for this fic and I feel that he deserves a lot of the credit on this. I am mainly a dialog storyteller when I write and where TIC does a lot of descriptive writing. All the imagery that you see in the fic is him and I feel he is doing a fantastic job plus he has given some of the most brilliant ideas in the fic so far.

**Chapter 4: Double Disclosure **

Growing up, Conner McKnight could remember his mother's fascination with classic horror movies. Dracula and the werewolf were both very scary but the one that always frightened Conner the most was Frankenstein's monster. The lab that he was created in was dark and dismal. The cold, rustic metal that surrounded everything, pulsating with electricity make the hair on the back of Conner's neck stand up. All these years later, it still got to him once in a while. Mesogog's laboratory got to him in such a way. The memories came flowing back like the levy of a dam breaking. A cool chill hit him, leaving his body covered in goosebumps in its wake.

The portal had teleported Conner, along with the other five teenagers into a long hallway that opened up in many rooms. From the hums and creeks of machinery on top of what he could swear were screams, nothing was going to jar Conner back to reality just yet. Cassidy pulled them all off to the side, getting her bearings based on the intel that was transferred to her.

"We need to find the Transmutation Ray before we do anything else," Cassidy stated in a matter of fact tone that finally began to gain some of Conner's attention. "The boss said that both Kira and the gems are being held with the ray. Apparently he plans to test it on her to make an example for the rest of us."

Eric nodded in concern. "We have to get the gems and save Kira. Without them both, our plan won't work."

He cut himself off as the sound of approaching footsteps got louder and louder, reverberating off the metallic floors. Everyone prepared themselves to defend against the worst. A figure rounded the corner, leading everyone to let out a sigh of relief.

"Dr. Payne?" Conner quizzed. "What are you doing here?"

"Kids, I'm so glad to see you," he sighed. "Thank God you're here." He hugged the twin brothers.

"Um, Dr. Payne. It's great that you're here but we kind of need to find the gems that Mesogog found today and destroy his Transmutation Ray," Devin mused.

"Right, sorry kids. Follow me," Dr. Payne said. "I know every nook and cranny of this place so I can take you straight to them." Everyone eyed each other in anticipation. Cassidy covered their rear with a judging gaze. "They should be in here," Edward gestured to doorway at the end of the hall. He pried the door open to reveal a large array of panels attached to large device that was aimed at a propped up examination table. Strapped and bound into the chair with leather belts was the same girl the boys had seen earlier. He hair was in a mess and her lower body was wrapped in bandages. Her eyes grew like saucers when they entered the room.

"Kira!" Krista yelled before the others could warn her to keep her voice down. She rushed across the room with the others quickly following. Kira tried to yell through the gag to no avail. Krista fought through her tears as she hurriedly removed the cloth from between the girl's lips.

"No! Get out of here!" Kira yelled the moment she was freed. "It's a trap!"

"What are you talking abo--?" Conner questioned. Before he could get a verbal answer he could feel his arms being restricted by a horde of tyrannodrones.

"Damnit! I knew something didn't smell right..." Cassidy cursed herself. At the lab entrance the only member of the group that was not being held back let out a dim chuckle, looking very pleased with himself. Dr. Edward Payne brimmed with pride.

"Cassidy!" Eric protested, "I thought you said you could trust your boss."

"I did," she struggled fruitlessly, "But this is not my boss."

"Well then who is?"

"I believe you are referring to thisssss fool..." Mesogog hissed as he entered the room, flanked by Elsa and White Ranger who was restraining Terrance Smith. "Payne informed me that Sssssmith was ssssspending a lot of time in ressssstricted areasssss. Naturally, I was curiousssss."

Terrance looked as if he had been severely beaten. Welts peppered his face and his clothing was torn. With a sympathetic look from the one eye that wasn't swelled shut he glanced over at the teens, knowing he had let them down.

"Now," Mesogog paced over to the invaders. "One of you has sssssomething that belongsssss to me now. Elsssssa, search them." He waved his claw, immediately sending the starkly dressed woman over who began to systematically pat Conner down. Ethan started to struggle, catching the reptile's gaze. "You ssssseem rather antsssssy. Why isssss that?" He stalked over towards Ethan and began to search through his pockets, quickly coming upon his prize. His fangs gleemed with delight as he carefully held the holodome and Infinital Sequencer. "I assume thessssse are what we were looking for. And you're quite ssssssure that we will be able to sssssee thisssss alternate reality, Payne?"

"Positive, my lord," Payne grinned. "I saw it with my own eyes. This Dr. Thomas Oliver exists in that reality. I can find no records of him in out world but apparently he's very important to their plans. Some things match with this timeline, but for the most part it is very different. In their time, Supreme Emperor Zordon sacrificed his life for the good of the universe."

Mesogog's eye's brightened as he realized the power that he now wielded. "That fool Zordon has gotten complacent with hisssss power. His followersssss are blind. If I could get rid of him, this reality would be uncontested and mine for the taking." Elsa seemed rather taken aback but pleased with her master's plans. His ambitious words forced her lips to purse with excitement.

"You're crazier than I ever thought you could be, Mesogog!" Cassidy mocked. "You couldn't possibly take on Zordon. You must have a death wish. No wonder dinosaurs are extinct!"

"Silence!" the White Ranger grabbed Cassidy by the hair and yanked her back, delivering a stiff punch to her face. Mesogog approached her, his reptilian tongue slithering back and forth. It rested on her face, lapping up the thin trickle of blood that began to trickle down her cheek.

"Elsssssa!" Mesogog commanded, "You and the other ssssstrap Sssssmith and the other rebel foolsssss down. It looksssss like we have a few more volunteersssss to tessssst out the Transssssmutation Ray." The tyrannodrones forced the struggling teenagers forward as Elsa manipulated a nearby control panel, sending out half a dozen other operating tables identical to Kira's Elsa overpowered Terrance's lanky frame. A metallic clang made the teens wince as his head slammed against the table. Mesogog leaned in at the White Ranger. "Keep an eye on the ssssspecimens while I examine these devicesssss for mysssssself. Elssssssa, you and Payne are ressssssponsible for making sure that the Bio-zordsssss are fully operational."

"No! Damnit! How can they be ready?" Terrance cried out. Mesogog exited the room, paying Smith's pleas no heed, flanked by Elsa and Payne. Soon only the White Ranger was left to watch over the teens. He leaned against the wall, his arms crossed. Smith continued to plead to no avail. "I'm sorry, kids. This is all my fault. I was careless and let Elsa catch me. All this time working so close to him and I was careless."

"Smith, you'd do well to finish exercising your mouth now. After the experiments are done, whatever you turn into might not have one," the White Ranger chuckled to himself as he moved from his perch towards the disheveled man. "You brought this upon yourself, old man. Going against Lord Mesogog is a fool's errand."

"Your parents were good people," Smith whispered in a defiant tone. "They loved and adored you right up until the moment Mesogog killed them. They would be so disappointed to see you now, Trent!" The kids all tried to look at each other but couldn't due to the restraints. It didn't matter though, they were all thinking the same thing. The history was right. Even in this reality, the White Ranger's name was Trent.

Trent chuckled again. It was a deep, visceral noise that couldn't possibly be elicited from one without the most twisted mind. It made Kira's insides churn just thinking of it. The scene of him impeding his blade into her back flickered in her head over and over again, the laugh acting as a sickening soundtrack. Uncontrollable whimpers began to exit her lips. Hearing them, Krista whispered words of encouragement, begging Kira not to let the White Ranger see her cry.

He heard. He always heard. He was trained to notice everything. The whining peaked his interest like a child on Christmas morning. "Well, well, well, my little pincushion has something to say. Please speak up. I love to hear you crying. I really should make a recording of this to lull me to sleep at night."

"Get away from her!" came a cry from over the White Ranger's shoulder as a punch caught him in the back of the neck. It was staggering due only to its surprising nature. Devin DeValle, swung wildly, having slowly cut through his straps thanks to small blade he kept hidden in his pocket. The others both cheered him on and feared for his life. His brazen attack caught the enemy off guard. The White Ranger dodged Devin's attacks, tripped against Kira's exam table. Like a chain reaction of dominos, the table slammed into the transformation ray, erupting in a puff of smoke and a laser blast that began to ricochet around the room. The beam whizzed passed Kira. She could feel the warmth near her face. It was an ominous heat that left goosebumps up and down her arms. In it's last approach, like a boomerang returning home, the shot careened into the White Ranger's wrist. More specifically, it hit his morpher, triggering a wave of bright, golden energy to flow through Trent's body, staggering him to his knees. The suit dissipated, revealing the human form of young Trent Fernandez. His was wearing clean white shoes, pants, and a long white jacket. The only dark article on his body was a deep, rich black undershirt. His shoulder length dark hair waved in his eyes, his breath was shallow from the sudden energy burst attacking his system. He shook his head, confused, trying to regain his senses.

Devin took a stance, trying to look like he was a capable fighter. He was shaking having never been trained like most of the resistance members. Trent peered around the room, trying to take in his surroundings like a great fog had just been lifted. "Hey, don't mess with me man," Devin stammered towards a confused Trent, "I watched all the Karate Kid movies."

Lost in his own world, Trent examined his morpher. "I feel so strange, like some great burden has been lifted off of my shoulders. It's so– Conner? Eric?" Trent finally noticed all of his former classmates tied down, like he was seeing them for the first time. Devin held his pose as Trent motioned over to Conner and undid his bindings. As soon as he was free, Conner lunged at Trent, slamming him against the wall.

"What the hell are you doing?" Conner spit in frustration. He peered at Trent with contempt. This kid had almost killed Kira and who knows how many others. Conner didn't see the cold, calculated eyes of a killer. Instead he saw true fear and confusion of an innocent soul. He slowly released his grip on the boy's coat. "Wait, were you telling the truth. That thing," he gestured towards the Drago morpher, "it was controlling you?" Trent nodded, afraid to say anything. Conner's lip curled before he sighed. "Help me free the others.

"Right," Trent almost silently mouthed.

Conner shook Devin back to reality. "Hey man, you did good."

"Really?" Devin brimmed with pride from ear to ear.

"Yeah, now let's get out of here," Conner finished as they freed the other.

"Wait, what just happened?" Krista apprehensively noted as she rubbed her sore wrists. "You tried to kill us and now you're rescuing us?"

"The white dino gem is inherently evil," Trent began, "while the other three gems possess positive energy, mine was created as a counteraction to them. That's been must have reversed it's polarity because for the first time I seem to be the master and the powers are serving me. I was searching through my dad's office when one of Mesogog's invisa-portals appeared. I went through it and landed in his lab. The gem was there and I just felt drawn to it and it jumped up and bonded to my arm. The rest is a haze but since then I've been under his control."

"We need to grab the Infinital Sequencer!" Terrance interrupted. "If Mesogog manages to fully utilize that device he can alter the timeline and forge it into his own image."

"What about the gems?" Conner inquired.

"What do you need the gems for?" Kira winced.

"No," Ethan informed. "Those gems have their own ranger powers."

Terrance nodded as he pointed at the transmutation ray that had become the center of most of the day's activities. "They should be in that compartment on the side." Conner went up to the side and fidgeted with it until the side slid open and the bright shine of the red, yellow, and blue gems was a familiar, relaxing sting to his eyes. But they were not alone as a violet-hue that gleamed from a cloudy, black gem joined them. He immediately knew what it was.

"Dr. Oliver's gem..." Conner murmured as he reached out instinctively for the red gem. It's shine grew brighter and brighter as his fingers got closer, enveloping his surrounded in a deep crimson glow like a rain of blood, taking everyone aback. When it had faded, a metal band was wrapped tightly around his wrist, centered in it was the red dino gem.

"How do you feel?" Trent inquired, wondering for comparison's sake.

"Like I just stuck a fork in an electrical socket and can't take it out," Conner grinned. Trent smiled and nodded knowingly.

"The gem seems to have fully bonded with you," Trent informed. "But luckily for you, thanks to its properties, you have control over it."

"Ethan, Kira," Conner tossed the blue and yellow dino gems to both of them respectively. Ethan's faced was etched in apprehensive excitement while Kira was the portrait of confusion. Neither had a moment to question the situation for the second that they caught their gems the room was once again baptized in a sea of light, the blue and yellow intermingled to form an almost lime green glow.

"Wow," Ethan muttered. He tried to hide his face from the others. Tears were forming in his eyes. The sense of importance and empowerment the gem instilled in his was overwhelming. Like his entire life of being the odd man out had led to this moment, the sensation of knowing what he now had at his disposal coupled with his desire to belong being fulfilled was enough to move him to tears.

"Um, I like the shiny new bracelet, but I'm not wearing yellow. Can I have the black one?" Kira inquired, "and what's the point of them anyway? I am not going to be like HIM," she defiantly gestured towards Trent, rage burning in her eyes.

Terrance Smith marveled at the entire situation. Sure they didn't look the same. Conner lacked the same focus, Ethan seemed physically far unprepared, Kira had too much of an edge, and the level of psychological damage done to Trent was still untested, but with the four colors empowering them, this was the team that he had seen in history recording. The differences were there, but so was the newfound hope. "Oh, um, guys," he rang his head back and forth a couple of times, "We can discuss this later. Now we need to find Mesogog before he can use that device!"

"I can get it myself," Trent spoke up.

"You?" Krista scoffed, "What, are you going to pretend the gem still has control of you and waltz right in the room and take it from him? When you steal the device in front of his face, he'll figure you out."

"Actually," Trent smirked, "I was thinking of doing this." He began to back up towards the wall, the contours of his body started to fad and by the time he made contact with the surface his entire body was invisible to the naked eye.

"You can turn invisible?" Eric cried out, his voice almost hitting a note inaudible to even the highest feminine pitch.

"Not quit," Trent voiced echoed from the wall, "I have to be touched a surface to blend into it like a chameleon. It's a power given to me by the gem. I can only use it when I'm not morphed, but it has come in handy," Trent reappeared in front of them. "Come to think of it, you three probably have your own powers as well. Anyway, I'll be right back with the devices." Before anyone could protest, Trent placed his hand against the wall and vanished from their sight.

"What do we do now?" Eric was a bit sore, noticing everything that was going on around him, feeling a bit left out.

"We wait, I suppose," Terrance tried to maintain some sort of order, as the only adult there. Clearly, his mind was somewhere else. "I just hope Trent doesn't rush in too quickly. He's too damned impulsive sometimes."

Ethan was fidgeting with his bracelet. "We should have asked him how we morph with these things. There aren't any buttons and I don't see a receiver of some kind.

"I am not becoming a ranger," Kira cried out. "Maybe you all can find it so easy to trust that guy, but I can't. He almost killed me. Do you want to see what he did to me? I'll rip these bandages off and show you what that son of a bit–"

Krista began to hug Kira tightly, allowing her to bury her face into Krista's shoulder, muffling her tears. She cooed her words softly. "Kira, no one is defending Trent's actions. He has to shoulder a lot of blame and live with what he did to you and so many others. Did you see his eyes? I've never seen such tired eyes. He's a teenager and it looks like he's already lived one hundred years. That's more punishment than any man deserves. He's hiding that all right now to help us. Now you have to help us too. I know you're hurting both inside and out. But you have to do your part to change this world so what happened to Kylee, will never happen to anyone else."

Kira peered up at Krista. She knew she was right. Such wisdom from someone so young. Kira weakly nodded.

"Glad to have you on board," Conner rested his hand on her shoulder. "But now what about this gem? There is no Dr. Oliver in this world to give it to."

Instead of a thick silence was ready to break out across the room, a loud siren juxtaposed their intended reaction to Conner's statement, causing everyone to instinctively slap their hands against their ears. Footsteps fast approached the room as Trent ran inside, closely followed behind by Elsa, Dr. Payne and a slue of tyrannodrones. He motioned for everyone to help him shut and barricade the door. Everyone rushed up to apply their collective force.

"Someone needs to get to that control panel," Terrance gestured. "It can magnetically lock the doors!" Conner nodded and ran towards the aforementioned console. As he began to move he found his feet to be moving faster than he could control. He blurred in a red sheen and quickly slammed into his intended target, causing an eruption of smoke and electricity. A dull hum came from the doors as they clanged, trying to shut, but instead freezing in their position.

"Damn! It's no good to us now kids," Terrance cried with a terrified nod.

They all backed away from the door, Elsa and the others crossed over the threshold, triumphantly against the defiant resistance.

"Whatever the hell you did there," Kira pointed at the console, "would you mind doing that again to these guys?"

"I wish I knew how that happened," Conner muttered.

"It looks like you're all out of options, White Ranger," Elsa smirked. "I don't know why you decided to join the resistance, nor do I care, but between you and me I'm ever so glad that you did. Master Mesogog puts you on a pedestal. The little White Ranger can do no wrong. Looks like daddy's boy has a bit of a rebellious streak in him."

"I'm sure his scaly ass has room for another set of lips, Elsa," Trent replied like a flame, boiling Elsa's hatred to a fever pitch. "You can tell my ADOPTIVE father that I'm officially emancipated."

"Trent, your father only wants what's best for you," Dr. Payne tried to reason with the boy. "You are becoming a threat to your dad. He loves you but when you do this he has no other choice but to..."

"Dr. Payne!" Conner yelled, "Why would you turn your back on humanity to be Mesogog's pawn?"

"I'm just doing my job. I'm not an idiot. Going against Master Mesogog is a fool's ambition."

A low thud filled the room as Elsa dropped to the ground. Dr. Payne shot his head around, searching for the cause only to be met by a shot across his face, sending him down on top of Elsa.

"Hayley?" Terrance said with a look of utter perplexity on his face. The tyrannodrones stood in silence as the firey red head paused in victory, brandishing a large metal pipe.

"Tyrannodrones! Destroy everything in the lab. Leave nothing operational," she snapped her fingers, causing them to immediately rush around the room ripping and tearing at every device and panel they could find. "Sorry I was so late. It wasn't hard to notice you guys. You've stirred up a lot of commotion. "Mesogog will be here any minute."

"What did you do to him anyway, Trent?" Cassidy asked.

"My dad is a good person when he's Anton Mercer, but he's still just a regular person. He can't normally control when he changes back and forth between that form and Mesogog. He's developed a formula though that stimulates the area of his brain that controls the chemicals that affect the change so with one shot he can force the change to happen. I just got close enough to stick him with a needle so he reverted back to Mercer. From there, it doesn't take much to knock him out," he gave a nervous smile. The others looked at him dumbfounded.

"Yeah," Hayley groaned. "But it worked. Mesogog was having me examine the time device when Trent comes in, steals the devices as he knocks out his father and the next thing I know these two," she points as the collapsed Elsa and Payne, "are chasing after him."

Trent flashes both the Infinital Sequencer and the holo-dome, handing them to Ethan.

"Let's go!" Terrance ushered everyone out of the room. A loud, deep growl almost shook the very walls around them. "He's awake! Move!" Terrance continued to cry until everyone had exited. He began to follow but was unable to move, like his foot was caught in a trap. He fell to the floor as a concussed Dr. Payne grabbed him, taking Smith to the floor. He pounced on Smith, ready for the kill.

"You're not getting away from me," Dr. Payne snarled. "You ruining my life, Smitty! I gave everything to Mesogog and he still picked you over me as his right hand man. You sit up on your perch day after day with your cushy job while I toiled away as a high school science teacher and then you have the gall to betray him? I'll never understand what he saw in you!" he continued to spew his venom, his hands throttled around Terrance's neck.

Hayley paused, looking back at Terrance. "Leave!" he yelled through his desperate gasps for air. "Do not jeopardize the mission for me!" He threw Payne over his shoulder and began struggling with him for the dominate position. Hayley ushered the kids along.

"Trent, you have ssssseverely disssssappointed your father." Everyone froze in their tracks. Before they could make much progress, they ran into a reptilian wall. Mesogog spat as he spoke. "I sssssuggest you return the gemssssss and those devicesssss to me now and we will dissssscuss your punissssshment later."

"You..." Trent glared at the creature,. "You are not my father. My father is a good man trapped inside your twisted mind, Mesogog!" Trent held his right arm up to his face, whispered the word 'ready' almost as if it was a secret password, causing his bracelet to change into the same morphing device that was a familiar symbol to the others from his wrist while he was in his suit. "White Ranger, Dino Power!" Trent called out as he pressed a small red button, engulfing him in white light, sending him through the air in a tornado. When he landed on his feet again he once again was covered in the costume of the infamous White Ranger. For the first time in their lives, the other teens were glad to see him.

"Okay," Ethan was ecstatic. "I want to do that."

"You already can," Hayley informed him. "You can access your morphers through those bracelets. I designed them with miniature teleportation devices. That's why they appeared once you bonded with the gems and why they can be converted into morpher form. They're powered by your morphing energy. As you live, so do they."

As she was finishing her explanation, Mesogog preemptively attacked the four defenseless teens, bringing Eric, Krista, Cassidy and Devin to their knees with his psychic attacks. "Your newfound sssssensitivity towardsssss thossssse weaker than you will be your downfall, Trent," Mesogog hissed.

Hayley rushed forward, trying desperately to hit the monster. Cassidy pleaded with the others. "Go! We'll try to distract him."

"I can't leave you. Mom and dad would never forgive me," Conner cried.

"You have to do it, bro," Eric choked through the pain, "if not there won't be a mom or dad to come back to."

"That world you showed us," Devin moaned, "It was a paradise. Make it a reality."

Conner looked at them, one at a time down the line like they were being prepared for a firing squad. He stopped at Krista. The girl who barely knew his name in class was now willing to give her life just to give him a chance. "We won't let you down." Conner gave them one last sympathetic, determined glance and grabbed Kira by the arm. "Ethan! Trent! We're out of here."

Ethan followed close on Kira and Conner's heels. Trent followed, always with his head over his shoulder, covering their flank. "You will not escape!" The voice came from the front. Trent spun around. Somehow, Elsa had recovered and was poised in front of the others, her sword drawn.

"I can't hold her off for a minute," Trent drew his Drago Sword and pushed to the front, meeting Elsa's blade with his own. "Get that thing working."

Ethan started to press random buttons, based on his assumptions from how he got the holo-dome to work. The hair on his arms stood up on end. The nervousness that consumed his body was not the only reason for it. He could feel a suction pulling him forward as a small, black void appeared before him, rapidly increasing in size. Kira screamed in fright, knocking Trent to the side and blowing Elsa off of her feet. The sound waves that were generated were visible in bright yellow rings. She slapped her hands to her mouth in shock.

"This is it guys," Ethan looked back his team. "Now or never."

"Where are we?" Trent questioned apprehensively.

"I'll tell you when I know. These are the coordinates that were preprogrammed in the sequencer."

"We'll find out when we get there!" Conner yelled as he shoved Ethan and Trent into the wormhole. He clutched onto Kira's wrist and pulled her in with him. The hole quickly closed up behind them leaving Elsa alone to report her failure.

Kira couldn't feel Conner's hand anymore. In fact, she couldn't feel much of anything. Like a weightless free fall, she felt lightheaded. Unsure of what to do, Kira closed her eyes, held her breath, and hoped that wherever… or whenever, she landed it would be just in time.

**To Be Continued...**


	5. Winds of Change

Disclaimer: Power Rangers. Disney owns them…………yeah

Authors' Note: TIC: Starting with this chapter we are really jumping into the meat of the story and establishing the flow. From here on out things just continue to escalate. Thanks to everyone who has been reading this so far and I hope that you will stick around for the ride and maybe some of those that haven't read yet will jump on board now.

**Impending Past**

Chapter 5: Winds of Change

There's an old adage that debates what is worse: would you rather be to Eden and taste the sweet fruit or know of such delectable pleasure, but never experience it yourself? For most people in Reefside, California, the former seems to be the greater of the two evils. Kira Ford can fondly remember both of her parents. They divorced while she was young but neither stopped loving her. She would spend two weeks at a time with one of them before switching houses across town. She could still go to the same elementary and middle schools, she got two rooms, her mother and father had both found a loving and caring second start so she basically had two sets of parents. Two Christmases, two birthdays, everything in life that a child could cherish, she had a matching set.

In fact, the unique thing that she wished she had another one of was her best friend, Kylee Styles. Kylee met Kira at the start of the sixth grade. There were two elementary schools in town and as kids advanced, they were merged into one middle school. When everyone was asked to stand up in front of class and talk about their families, Kylee said that her father had died within the last year but she wasn't sad because her mother loved her twice as much to make up for him. As the class was seated into groups of four based upon an alphabetical, first name system, the two girls were in the same group. Soon they discovered their mutual love for music. They formed a duo to be reckoned with in the school talent show, taking second prize overall.

But the girls, like everyone else, saw the events that led to the enslavement of Earth at the hands of Emperor Zordon unfold on national television. Depending on location, different areas were hit harder. Southern California was the nexus for this activity. Throughout the years, as Kira recalled, the Power Rangers always seemed to be centered there. What possessed these evil forces to target the start remained a mystery.

The day after the formal surrender of the federal government, everyone was in a state of panic. Should they go to school? Was there even a school to go to anymore? A fast, deliberate rasping at the door shocked Kira back into the cold reality that was beginning to envelope the planet. Kylee ran inside, her knees buckled as she collapsed as soon as she had crossed the threshold. The eyeliner that she had begged her mother to let her start wearing was smeared across her face.

"She's gone," Kylee choked past the pain. Kira ran over and hugged her best friend. What else could she do? She clenched her close, refusing to let go until there was some answer that would bring some sort of clarity. Kylee gasped through her story as Kira's father handed her a glass of water. Apparently Zordon's forces had been traveling house to house, striping them bare for valuables to help feed his army. When Kylee's mother didn't have as much as they were hoping for and she began to resist, one trigger happy soldier shot her. They had quickly filed out and went on to the next residence, leaving Kylee behind to fend for herself.

Kira eyed her father. He was usually so cool and calm and while he was silent as usual, it had her on edge. He didn't have an easy answer for his daughter. Despite all the bullets the family had dodged, this was the first time that Kira couldn't look to anyone else for a solution.

As the next few years went on, both girls got disenfranchised with the new dictatorship that had swept the country. Both of Kira's parents had agreed that Kylee could go where Kira went, from house to house, two weeks at a time. Wanting two of everyone, Kira finally had a sister of sorts. But, while the parents were asleep at night, the girls would always sneak out and make their way to a secret location. Like clockwork, a black jeep would arrive and pick them up at 10:35 p.m to take them to their oasis. The resistance base that was run by one Terrance Smith and the first person to join the organization, Cassidy Cornell. It was there that the girls learned everything together. How to shoot a gun, how to defend themselves, how to finally feel like there was a place where they both belonged and had hope in a world where such a dream was impossible. One night, the girls just didn't go home. The parents searched and searched but never found them again. The girls didn't much care either. They had a higher calling. With each bombing raid on one of Zordon or Mesogog's factories, life felt just a little more livable.

To this day Kira still kicks herself for the botched operation. It was her call on how much explosives to use and she overstuffed the damned bomb. When it went off she was blown clean to the side, knocking herself out on pipe. She came to back in the rebel camp. Cassidy informed her that based on surveillance it appeared that Kylee had either been killed in the explosion or some of his soldiers had found her and finished the job themselves. Due to her location, Kira was just flat out overlooked.

She buried herself in paperwork for weeks. While others went out on jobs, Kira refused to leave the resistance base. Terrance would visit her, day after day, only to get the same response that she just didn't feel up to fieldwork. Smitty's rational had always been that after the war was over he would make sure that Kira would return to her family. Until then, he tried to act as her surrogate father. Had he failed her? No, he refused to accept that.

A few months passed by, Kira refusing to heal. Smith came to her one day, explaining how important the next assignment was and how it was going to take her special marksmanship to land a perfect shot. Reluctantly, she decided to join him along with a new recruit. Krista reminded Kira so much of Kylee sometimes that it scared her. Physically they weren't similar at all. Krista was much taller and her deep, red hair contrasted Kira's towheaded band mate. But the youthful exuberance and gung ho spirit that drove Kylee was ever present in this new girl.

The assignment was actually fairly by the books. Smitty was just hoping that once Kira took that first step out the door, the others would come naturally. Mesogog had recently set up a testing facility on as isthmus in the northwest corner of Reefside. They were simply to get in and use the strategic cover of nightfall and tree canopies to sniper a few control panels hooked to some chambers of experimental devolution formula. Smitty had already painstakingly committed to memory the locations of these targets and the chance of guards expecting them was slim to none due to the relative recency of the compound's erection.

To this day Smitty regrets ever having Kira go on the assignment. As he yelled at her and the other teenagers to run while he held of Edward Payne, in his heart he believed that she knew that and he hoped that one day she would forgive him.

Kira, on the other hand was quietly musing to herself as she floated in the air. Was it air? Not really. Surely Ethan would have a fancy, five-dollar-word for what was going on. In her gut if felt like a dagger was slowly twisting her organs. It was a painful, unfamiliar feeling that oddly put her at ease. That was the real money question. Why is it that at the time when she has the least amount of control over her life that she finally feels at ease with the world around her? If, in fact, you can call the temporal stream a world in of itself.

In a rapid succession, like the thud of sand bags being dropped as a stopgap, Kira heard Conner and Ethan drop to the ground followed by their groans of complain. She braced for impact, praying for her sore back. Instead of being met with a dull pain instead she dropped gently into someone's arms. Tender arms, she mused to herself, caring arms. In a smooth, delayed gaze she beamed up at her savior, hoping to find a pair of baby blues eyes. What she saw was the bloody crimson visor that had forced her awake in a cold sweat so many nights before.

"Get away from me you son of a bitch!" Kira screamed as she punched Trent on his helmeted jaw line. She leaped out of his arms, taking a defensive stance.

"Kira, Kira, Kira! Calm down! That's Trent," Conner rest assuredly placed his hands on her shoulders. "He's helping us now, remember?"

Kira brushed the much taller boy off as if any human contact would make her skin melt. "Maybe he's helping you. I don't trust him."

"Power down," Trent whispered, hoping that his human form would ease the tension.

"So just exactly where are we?" Conner voicing the concern that everyone was feeling. Ethan vigorously tinkered with the sequencer.

"Blue Bay Harbor... 2003..." he murmured, rather dejected.

"You mean to tell me that I had to abandon my best friends to travel back in time one year and only a few hundred miles after from home?" Kira was visibly frazzled, venting her frustration on the three guys. "No dinosaurs to slay, no world conquerors to stop, to wars to prevent? We went through all of that and this stupid machine basically has the same function as a car? Hell, before you answer that, what exactly are we doing here anyway? I must not have been informed of the situation. See, I was too busy almost becoming a science project and being carved for dinner by 'Mr. Short, White, and Creepy' over here," she pointed an accusing finger at Trent.

Ethan pointed to the corresponding buttons and monitors on the sequencer as he tried to explain the situation. "The coordinates are preprogrammed. According to these devices the four of us, along with this Dr. Oliver are the DinoThunder Power Rangers. That's why we rescued you and got the gems. We found these at the dig site where you attacked Mesogog and were subsequently yourself attacked by... um..."

Kira shot a glance at Trent who in turn glared at Ethan for bringing the topic up again.

"...anyway," Ethan gulping, trying to regain his train of thought. "According to this device the Power Rangers are supposed to go back through time, year by year, to systematically find out what problem caused the much more desirable timeline that it displays into the one that we are familiar with. Basically, it's trial by error."

"What should we do with this in the mean time?" Conner pondered as he rolled the black dino gem back and forth across his knuckles.

Ethan snatched the gem off of Conner's hand, eyeballing him. "THIS could be used to find this Dr. Oliver guy. It's supposedly his so the closer we get to him, the more it should glow. In theory it will act as a tracking device."

Trent gazed out across the land. He remembered the area fairly well from a briefing he had gotten from his so-called father. Apparently Zordon's forces had effectively slashed and burned everything in an effort to wipe out groups that he deemed possible future threats. They had never actually presented any aggression against the emperor. It was a preemptive strike on his part. Total and complete brutality just because he was irrationally afraid. All of the beauty of the once lush forest, the fertile lands, and the teeming rivers was gone.

As the White Ranger peered at the landscape, another pair of eyes was examining him. The man steadied his breath and pulse rate. Just arriving to this section of his enemy's territory on his daily surveillance run, the man pondered the group. The four teenagers seemed normal enough, but why would they possibly be here? Had other ninjas survived the attacks? Was it even possible? They didn't have any uniforms or distinctive markings of Zordon or any of his underlings' troops. Either way, he pressed a small red button on the side of his morpher. No matter who they were it was always good to have some back up.

"Hello!" he cried out with little more than a thought. It was best to play it casual until he knew more. He revealed himself from his spot. The four teens took a defensive stance for a moment. The tallest of the group and the black one appeared to be happy just to see any sign of life. Meanwhile, the other boy in the long coat was far too tense. What shook the man was how this boy was shaking not of fear, but of excitement. He was clearly a fighter. Better watch him.

The last one was the most out of place among the others and not just because she was the only female. He could feel an uneasy confidence radiating off her that was intoxicating. She was clearly a woman who had been through the ringer and come out stronger than ever. His desire to drink in her spirit was overwhelming.

"Hey man, good to see someone," Conner extended his hand to which the man gave it a brief, firm shake.

"My name's Blake. What are you doing out here? It's not safe," he inquired, eyeing them one by one, searching for any discernable body language that would reveal if what they said and their actual intentions rang true.

"That's a good question," Trent brushed Conner back, stepping forward to meet this unknown man head on, taking note of his black uniform. The way it reminded him of a ninja gi sent up a red flag in Trent's mind. "We don't really know where 'here' is and we're basically stranded. You wouldn't happen to be able to tell us where we are, would you?"

Blake painted the most sincere face he could for the travelers. "I can do you one better," he pointed off to the west. "My brother and a friend of ours are located in a ninja academy a few miles that way. If you'd be willing, I'd take you over there and you could spent the night."

Ethan and Kira looked at Conner for advice. He nodded towards them, ignoring Trent's apprehensive gaze. "Sure," he cautiously answered. "We'd love to."

Blake led the way, followed at his side by Conner, who had tucked the black dino gem into his breast pocket for safekeeping. Kira was close behind, holding onto the holo-dome for Ethan who was lagging behind while he studied the sequencer.

"As I told you, my name is Blake Bradley," the man began telling his story at Conner's request to pass the time. "My older brother Hunter and I were adopted when we were young and brought up in the Thunder Ninja Academy..."

"Ninja Storm," Conner muttered.

"What's that?" Blake perked up.

"Oh, nothing," he waved Blake off. "I have a twin brother who always wanted to try that ninja stuff. Too bad he's not here. He'd kill to have you show him a few moves."

Ethan momentarily stole himself away from the device. "Ninjas? Awesome. Ninjas are cool!"

"As I was saying." Hitting his pace again, the man continued. "We were trained from a young age in all forms of discipline based on the teachings of thunder. There are approximately twenty different ninja schools, each based on an element. Among them, two reign as the most powerful, thunder being number one."

What's the other one?" Kira chimed in, almost running directly into the man as he stopped cold in his tracks. She gulped. A chill fell over her, almost as if the breeze around her was picking up speed. No, wait. She wasn't just imagining it. Her hair began to violently flutter in her face, obstructing her vision. Blake gently placed his hand up, palm outstretched against her torso.

"Stay back," he whispered in precaution. "They're here."

Ethan finally looked up from his work. "Who's here?" he stuttered. He got his answer in the form of a cool blast of air, knocking him to his feet along with the others. They all struggled to regain their footing. As they stood up, before them three people, arms crossed, were looking them up and down in contempt. They wore clean, black uniforms; each accented by a primary color and matching ninja insignia medals. They were oddly similar to the old on Blake with only a few minor differing details.

"What are you doing here, Thunder?" the darker skinned man with short, black hair and a red highlighted uniform inquired of Blake.

"You're in our territory," the blonde woman accused. Her costume contrasted the blacks with a light, almost sky blue color.

Blake snarled in contempt at them. "I wasn't doing anything, Winds. I was out on a scouting mission. Nothing more."

"Who are they?" accused the yellow clad warrior, his dusty brown hair tossed in the remains of an air pocket wake. "Did you find some more stray ninjas? Are you trying to feed them your typical thunder lies?"

A sudden rumble in the sky sent the team of three into a state of apprehension, assuming defensive poses while a smile curled on Blake's lips. In blinding flashes of dark red and black light, two other forms appeared on either side of the man. On his left there was another man, slightly taller than Blake with messy, sandy blond hair. His uniform matched Blake's leading the rangers to believe that this was the same Hunter that he was talking about.

The other man, if you could call him that, was what struck them as odd. His form was rather large and hulking. His armor wheezed and clanked with every movement. The hilts of swords hung out from both of its shoulders. A red insect design covered the face of what was primarily a pitch dark outfit. He looked oddly out of place in what was already a surreal situation.

"Shane, Tori, Dustin," the recently arrived man called out. "Leave my brother alone. He has not attacked you. If you had any honor, you'd follow the ninja code and let him pass."

"Hunter," Shane interjected. "First of all, I can't believe you'd bring Zurgane with you," he looked at the odd armored man. "I'd have hoped that you'd stop hiding behind outside forces by now. As far as your brother goes, he was in Wind Academy territory spying on us. That can be perceived as an act of aggression. If we choose to attack then it is a an honorable preemptive strike."

"With that threat," Hunter assumed an offensive stance, "you have left us with no other option."

Ethan quickly tucked the sequencer into his pocket while the six fighters readied themselves. He looked down at his bracelet, wishing he had asked Trent how to make it work earlier. Trent himself was just as poised for battle as the others. As Shane and Hunter ran at each other, fist clenched, Ethan decided that it might be a good idea to reevaluate his stance. Maybe ninjas weren't that cool after all.

**To be continued...**


	6. Throwing Down the Gauntlet

Disclaimer: I don't think we really need to explain this…..The disclaimers are in the first 5 chapters already.

Authors' Comments: Thanks you guys! It turns out that this fic not only won Fanfic of the Month (December), but also Fanfic of the Year 2005 at It seems we are doing something right. ;) Anyway, on with the next chapter.

**Impending Past **

**Chapter 6: Throwing Down the Gauntlet**

1"Why can't you be more like your brother? He's well respected by his peers and makes six figures a year. You? We invested so much time and money into your studies and instead of doing something with your life you go off to practice martial arts and skateboarding. You've thrown away everything that we've given you. What happens when you really mess up and get yourself killed? Why would you want to put your mother through such an ordeal? You're just the same typical, selfish son that you always were."

Whenever Shane would go into battle, his father's words tried to hold him back.

"You've disappointed this entire family. When people ask me what you do, I have to lie because you're such an embarrassment. Do you know what mom tells people about her two sons? She says that Porter is her pride and joy and that she still loves Shane. The joy sinks out of her heart when she talks about you. Why do you refuse to make something of yourself Shane?"

Whenever Shane would enter a skating competition, his brother's words would eat at his gut.

The day that Zordon's forces began to stretch across Blue Bay Harbor was the last time Shane ever got on a skateboard and the last time he would ever have a chance to let his family down.

"Ki-yah!" Shane let out a deep throated, visceral scream as he lunged at the shaggy, fair-haired leader of the opposition. The dark crimson red contrasted the brighter one on his suit. In rapid succession they fired punch after punch and kick after kick at one another, the contrasting reds looking like blinking Christmas lights. His concentration was deep. Over the past few months he had quickly gained a new level of trust and respect for his teammates. As long as he kept Hunter occupied he knew that they would keep Zurgane and Blake busy on their own.

Tori was a strong girl and based on her ability to manipulate water she knew how to make her enemy's control over thunder and lightning work against him. Dustin was already a stand out among most ninjas when it came to his control over the sword. He trained harder and more fiercely since Zurgane had appeared and joined the fold. Their clashing sabers made beautiful music that to Shane was the soundtrack to their battles.

What ultimately perplexed him were the four with Blake that escalated the confrontation. In the months since the initial attack there had been no sign of life in the immediate area. So why would four teenagers suddenly appear with one of the enemy?

Kira's outstretched palms were buried in the dirty earth, her knees limp on the ground as she watched the boy that had recently befriend her thrust his kicks with lightning fast precision towards the blonde girl. Make no mistake, she was a match for him but it still terrified her. Must every man she met be predisposed to hitting women?

"Kira! Move!" The cry was a formality as by the time he said it she had already been thrust to her feet and pushed back into Conner's arms. A second later the female ninja's foot landed violently where Kira's hands had been resting.

With his attention momentarily diverted, Tori leaped over Blake's shoulder and aimed her attack at the closest foreigner. The water flowed out of her pours and began to harden on her hand. Her teeth gritted as even the beads of sweat on her forehead contributed to the weapon: water crystallized into a claw of ice.

Ethan cried in terror as he realized far too late that she was aiming at him. All he could do was hold up his arms in a vane attempt to block the pain. A dull thud followed. Was he dead? That didn't hurt so bad. Wait, who was screaming? He didn't sound that feminine, did he?

"What the hell are you?" Tori moaned as she held her wrist. Ethan examined his arms. They were glowing with a brilliant blue hue with a tiny, intricate pattern of lines. No. Those weren't lines. The way they curved was unmistakable. They were scales.

Ethan glanced at the gem on his bracelet. It too was glowing. "Trent has chameleon powers," he quickly put two and two together, "so that must mean I have the ability to create a sort of armor around my body."

"Ethan? Are you alright?" Trent ran over to Ethan's aid, scolding himself all the way for letting one of them get attacked.

"I'm fine," Ethan nodded reassuringly.

Regaining his balance Blake began to swing wildly at Tori who flipped backwards towards Dustin and Shane who had grouped up against Zurgane and Hunter. Once again it was a three on three standoff.

"Tori? Are you able to morph?" Shane stated, refusing to even look her over. The disappointment over her stung in his tone.

"Yes," her voiced dropped off.

"Ready!" Shane cried out, his voice doubled over by Hunter speaking the same word. In impressive synchronization the three Wind ninjas held their arms in the air while the Thunder ninjas shot theirs to the side. "Ninja Storm!"

"Thunder Storm!"

"Ranger Form, HA!" the last three words echoed from the five ninjas as gyros whirled and buttons were pressed. The four teenagers shielded their eyes, missing the light engulfing the forest that, when cleared, revealed two teams of Power Rangers. The dark leggings and gold trimmed shoulder pads distinguished the crimson and navy colored Thunder Rangers from the more lightly adorned Wind Rangers. But the overall stylistic helmets, arm weavings, and circular chest insignias showed that while these groups were rivals there still were cut from the same cloth.

"Oh come on," Kira's voice sank, "They morphed before us? This is so unfair."

"Not now!" Conner cried out as he grabbed Kira by the arm. The five rangers were each summoning out their individual weapons. Zurgane stood by the two brothers, his swords at the ready.

"Storm Striker!" the Wind Rangers combined their weapons while the Thunders quickly followed suit with their own Thunder Blaster.

"Ready..." commanded both Zurgane and Tori.

"Aim..." Blake and Dustin followed.

"Everybody duck!" Conner was too late with his plea to Ethan and Trent as he fell to the ground with Kira. Shane and Hunter had both given the order to fire over his cries, setting off an explosion that blanketed the landscape within a full mile radius with a dust cloud. As it settled the morphed rangers were on their knees, shuffling around to find their companions.

"Blake! Where are you?" Hunter and Zurgane had already managed to regroup on their side of the blast radius.

"I'm right here." A figure emerged from the debris, looking more like a set of scales than a human being. The silhouette clarified itself. The Navy Thunder Ranger had two unconscious figures slumped over his shoulders. Blake tossed Conner into Zurgane's outstretched arms and held onto Kira himself.

His brother smirked. "What about the other two and the Winds?"

"Leave them for now," Blake answered. "These two will be more than enough to figure out all we need to know." Hunter and Zurgane began to pace back into the woods with Blake trailing behind. He noticed the weight on his shoulder. This alluring girl was stuck in his head. What was it about it? Either way, he hoped that she wasn't actually a threat to the remains of the Thunder Ninja Clan. He'd had to have to kill her.

---

Ethan James almost drowned when he was five years old. As the cool water splashed through his every pore, his arms flailed around in desperation, clinging for life. His eyes shot open, pupils dilated as they focused on the figure before him. The girl's face was beautiful yet locked in a terrible grimace. He could feel the contempt she had for him. The reason why quickly returned to him as the splint on her hand caught his eyes.

Scanning the room, Ethan could tell that it had definitely not been utilized to its fullest extent. Although the screen-printed doors and low to the ground wooden table in the center made it look like a typical Japanese living area, it also was filled with state of the art technology. What bothered Ethan was how much of it had collected dust as if those who were trying to operate it were clearly out of their depth. So why install it at all?

He shifted around nervously as Tori kept her eye trained on him. His neck was tight and his arms were heavy. The gentle clinking noise alerted him to the fact that he was shackled to the wall. Dull groaning to his side made his body jump. Trent was next to him, slipping in and out of consciousness. He could remember the boy trying to shield him when the explosion went off.

"Where are Conner and Kira?" he regretting asking the girl that question.

"I assume you mean the other two," Tori shifted her weight and sat down on the table, facing him. "We lost track of both them and the Thunders during the battle. Maybe they're all together, maybe they're dead. Your guess is as good as mine."

The comment stung him deeply. Dead? No. They couldn't be. After all that the rebels had done to help them escape, after all the hope was placed on their shoulders, it couldn't be over so quickly.

"Damnit!" Shane slammed his fist against the keyboard in front of him. "How is any of this supposed to work anyway?"

Ethan looked at the from out of the corner of his eye. Just as he expected, this equipment was completely foreign to these ninjas. "Um, if you don't mind me asking..."

The third member of the team had been standing in the corner, observing the others. At Ethan's tone he paced over to the prisoner. "Yes? Something you wanted to say?"

Ethan recoiled slightly before continuing. "I just wanted to say. It seems like you're having trouble with your computers. I'm pretty good at them myself if you want some help. Why would you have such a sophisticated setup if none of you can work it anyway?"

Dustin, without a misstep, immediately gestured over towards a wooden box that was against the wall farthest away from them. It was a beautiful oak design and was covered in a ceremonial ninja schroud with fresh orchids lining it. On top there was burning incense that perfumed the room in lavender and cherry blossoms. In the center was a framed photograph. "That was Cameron Watanabe," the Yellow Ranger explained, his voice taking a low respectful volume, "Our powers, our weapons, this base, everything you see before you... it was his idea. He created it all. Thanks to those Thunder Rangers you were hanging out with earlier, he never got a chance to see them used."

Ethan held his gaze on the casket. What could he possibly say? "Um," he fumbled for words. "I'm sorry. But you said this was a ninja academy. Aren't there any other students?"

The silence that followed ate away at Ethan. Dustin was simply eyeing him up and down. Neither Tori nor Shane said anything or gave an indication of what they were thinking about this unknown outsider being so forward. "Come here." After an eternity, Dustin unlocked Ethan's chains and pushed him towards the main door. The duo made their way up a spiral staircase, the smell of fresh air momentarily permeated Ethan nostrils before they were quickly stung with the pungent aroma of death and decay. As Dustin opened a small trap doorway that led from their underground location to the surface, nothing could truly have prepared Ethan for what he saw. Before him lay a sea of human bodies, each indistinguishable from the next. They were all clad in the same black Wind Academy suits as the rangers. It was impossible to tell which belonged to the Air branch compared to the Earth and Water sectors as the crimson blood that stained the bodies covered up the colored markings.

"One hundred and thirty-seven Wind Ninja students." Dustin murmured. "All my friends. All dead thanks to the Thunder Ninja Academy."

Ethan vomited.

---

A few weeks ago the man formerly known as Kiya knew exactly what he was going to do. After spending countless years exiled in the outer reaches of space, painstakingly building up a perfect army he was ready to return to each to rid himself of his twin brother. From there he would gain control over all of the ninja schools and slowly conquer the entire planet. Now he instead sits besides this same brother whose very existence rots away at his soul. His body so frail, so weak, and so very close to death. He cares for him constantly along with his nieces and general Chuubo. Life for the man that now prefers to be known as Lothor seemed so much easier those weeks ago.

The young woman walked up to her uncle, handing him a fresh bowl of water. Her cute, shoulder-length brown hair framed her plain face well. She wore a bulky, cream-colored dress that brought very little attention to her. "Thank you Marah," the calm tone masked his regularly gravel-like voice.

Marah smiled as she rejoined her sister in the kitchen of the small house. Lothor soaked the wash cloth in his hand, ringing out the excess liquid before placing it on Kanoi's head.

Kapri was wearing a slightly darker, gray dress that very much resembled that of her sister as she carefully chopped the carrots in front of her. They didn't want to chance too much stress on the Wind Academy sensei's body by teleporting him to their ship so instead it was decided that they would make camp in most livable abandoned house in the surrounding area. Kapri liked to tell herself that most of these houses in Blue Bay Harbor had actually been abandoned and the people that used to live in them were able to make it to safety. The crimson stains and wake of debris told a different story.

"Hey," Kapri jumped as her sister rested her hand on her shoulder. "Are you chopping those at a straight ninety degree angle? You know Uncle doesn't like them when they aren't perfectly straight." Marah was putting on her best sing song voice to comfort her. When they were bickering with one another was when they truly were at their best. All the other crap was thrown out the window. This was how they let their minds wander.

"They're fine Marah."

"Are you sure? Because last time Uncle blamed me and I don't want to have to take the rap all the time for your mistakes..."

"My mistakes!" Kapri snapped back, placing the knife down on the counter top. "Who is the one that didn't take out the trash? It was your turn to take out the trash. I told you to take out the trash. You said you were going to take out the trash. But who had to take out the trash after you let it pile up in the corner for five days? Me, that's who."

The corner of Lothor's lip turned up slightly as the girls continued to argue back and forth in the background. He listened to it, dulling it to a degree as if it was music. The door creaked open. Chuubo was back from trying to gather up as much fresh food as he could from nearby grocery stores before it spoiled. The constant noises from them were the soundtrack to his life and by continuing to hear them he felt at some sort of peace.

"Oh brother," Lothor tenderly checked the bandages around Kanoi's ribs. "He did this to you, didn't he? And those damned students of yours along with the Thunder Ninjas have too much passion for their own good." Lothor chuckled to himself. "Don't think that I'm going soft of you. When this is all over and you're healed, I'm still going to kill you."

---

"Hey, wake up. We're all waiting on you."

Kira's eyes gently flickered like the end of a film reel. She struggled to focus on the familiar face. Blake. "You bastard!" She lunged for him, not noticed the ropes that bound her hands behind her back. He caught her a split second before her face collided with the cement ground.

"Wow brother," Hunter smirked. He was leaning up against the wall, one foot firmly on the ground, the other flat against the side with his arms crossed. "You sure know how to pick them."

Blake sat her upright and untied her bonds as he spoke to her in a calming voice. "Listen, we're sorry about what happened earlier. The ropes were just a precautionary measure. You shouldn't have gotten dragged into that mess. The Wind Rangers are dangerous. They might have your friends." Kira looked around as she wrung out her sore wrists. She saw Conner next to her with an empty tray to his side. His eyes were disheveled. She could read him right away. Ethan and Trent were not there. It was only the two of them and their captures. Blake smiled as he handed her a glass of water and a cool, steel tray of her own on which there was some crudely made bean soup and a few slices of bread.

"Sorry we don't have anything better," he muttered, somewhat ashamed. "Thanks to all the damage food is in short supply and we can't really make it too far out of the town's radius."

She nodded as her lips were greedily placed around the bread. They hadn't fed her while she was a prisoner of Mesogog so by this point, she probably would have killed and eaten the first woodland creature that came within the proximity of her reach.

"So," Hunter stepped forward. His brother was always a little soft when it came to women. He fell apart at the seams leaving Hunter to pick up the pieces. "We were talking to your friend here and he says that you're looking for someone? A Doctor Oliver?"

"Yeah," she started to trail off, unsure of what she should say or how much Conner had already told them.

"We haven't heard of him. Zurgane searched through our database before he left for supplies an hour ago. We're sorry we couldn't be of any help..." Before Kira could thank him, Hunter continued his sentence, clearly having his own motivation. "...but that still leaves me wondering. Blue Bay Harbor is practically a war zone and to get anywhere near the Wind Ninja Academy you have to drudge fairly deep into the city. How did four teenagers manage to get this far without being spotted?"

"You see we're..."

Hunter cut her off being Kira could stammer out the best lie she could think of on such short notice. "Listen. As long as you're not actually affiliated with the enemy, the truth is what's going to help you more." He starred her down. Unwilling to flinch to yet another male trying to overpower her, Kira let her stubbornness rule her.

"Here's the truth." Conner pulled out the holo-dome from his pocket and held it aloft between Hunter and Kira. Hunter and Blake both perked up as Conner continued. "Kira and I along with the other two you met earlier are from approximately one year in the future. Like you, we're destined to be Power Rangers." Conner held up his right arm with the bracelet containing his dino gem. "Apparently the world as we know it is wrong. Something altered history to make it as bleak as it is now. We found this device that was left in our town by another ranger. According to her, if we follow its coordinates we'll find out causing the rift in time. Thanks to another machine that my friend Ethan has we were able to time travel. The first place it sent us to was right where Blake found us."

Hunter didn't skip a beat. "And why do you want to find this Oliver person?"

"He's supposed to be the fifth member of our team but he doesn't exist in our timeline. We were hoping that if we found him along the way he could give us a clue as to what we're supposed to be looking for and that's the whole truth."

Both thunders paused and exchanged glances with one another. Blake nodded. "We believe you," Hunter chimed in.

"You do?" Kira hesitated. "Why?"

"Maybe it's because he sounded so sincere," Hunter paced between the two time travelers. "Or maybe it's because you both have that honest look on your faces that a person can't really fake. Or truthfully, it's mostly because I noticed that Conner had that device on him when we captured you and we could have taken it at any time but I wanted to give you a chance to explain it yourselves first and you did."

Conner smiled nervously while Kira just rolled her eyes at him. She continued to eat her soup and sandwich while Hunter and Blake sat down next to them. "Well thanks for trusting us guys. You said that those other ninjas might have out friends. What should we do now to get them back?"

There was no reply. The two brothers were stone faced for at least a full agonizing minute. Kira gulped. Blake broke the silence. "If your friends are with the Wind Ninjas I wouldn't be surprised if they were already dead."

"What!" Conner jolted forward to his feet but Hunter was quick to restrain him. "Let me go! We need them to stay as a group! Ethan has the sequencer!"

"We can't let you leave now." Blake placed his arm on Kira's shoulder. "If the Wind Rangers were to capture you after you left they could torture you and as much as we like you guys, we will not put ourselves in jeopardy because of you."

"I don't care about your stupid feud with those other ninjas!" Every muscle in Conner's body began to flare up. He charged forward, breaking Hunter's grip on him. He was going to grab Kira and get out of there, ninjas or no ninjas. At least, he thought he was going to before he legs gave out and his eyes dimmed. With a beautiful, silent thrust kick, Blake had caught Conner on the square of the jaw, dropping him to the ground before he could even realize what was going on.

"You bastard!" Blake hadn't even needed to loosen his grip on Kira's arms. He held firm while Hunter picked up Conner's body and thanked his younger brother. Blake followed closely behind, dragging Kira the whole way as Hunter led the way to a holding cell in the next room. It looked very much like a jail cell, rustic with cool gray steel. It stood out starkly from the otherwise wood grained walls of the compound. Hunter tossed Conner inside while Blake forced Kira inside, kicking and screaming the whole way. She fell to her knees as Blake locked the door behind her. "Why are you doing this?" she protested through her tears.

"Why?" Blake pierced her with his gaze. "In the last few weeks I lost my fellow students and my sensei. Outside of Hunter, they were my family. Over one hundred family members that meant the world to me are now dead. The Wind Rangers are to blame for it. I know you cared for your two friends in the same way that I did my family but it's time that you forget them. They're gone Kira. I'm sorry."

As Blake walked away with his brother, Kira clutched the tear-strained cell bars. After all of the hell that Mesogog's army had put her through she still never lost hope. Today that lofty sense of belief came crashing down around her.

**To be continued...**


	7. Kith and Kin

We are going to stop doing the disclaimer because it is on every chapter already and I think you all know who owns the Power Rangers anyway. If you don't, look at the other chapters.

Authors' note: TIC: This was a fun chapter to write because I got to play around with Marah and Kapri, too very underappreciated characters. Also, any chance to add depth to characters that never seemed to have is always a treat. The NS arc of this fic is coming to a close with the next chapter so enjoy it while you can. TM: Please leave feedback and predictions of what is going to happen next. I personally like reading the comments on the fic. On with the fic.

**Chapter 7: Kith and Kin**

"This should be an easy fix. It won't take long."

Ethan wiped his sweaty brow on his shirt sleeve. He was laid out on his back underneath the main computer console in Ninja Ops. His stomach churned as he tinkered away at the panel, having not yet recovered from the sight he saw outside of the base. Lying down while trying to concentrate on such delicate equipment wasn't really helping the matter. The taste of vomit was still lingered on his breath.

The other prisoner continued to sit silently in the corner. He had woken soon after Ethan returned and was freed as well. The way he surveyed the room weighed heavily on the Wind Rangers' minds. They each checked on him from time to time, never once letting him go unnoticed. He didn't seem so oblivious like Ethan or the other two, Shane noted. They all seemed naive to a point. This one, on the other hand, carried himself much better. He was always eyeing his surroundings as if ready to spring forward at any moment.

"What's his deal?" Shane leaned down near Ethan's side and whispered as he gestured towards Trent.

Ethan gazed up for a moment before grabbing a screwdriver and continuing his work. "Oh, Trent's a... little bit different than the rest of us," he hesitated. "He's a bit high strung. I don't think it's anything to be too concerned with."

Shane's eye twitched, searching for something a little more concrete.

"Um..." Ethan began to trail off. "He's an artist. You know the type. Very eccentric, always looking for the next big inspiration."

Shane tensed up, becoming more and more displeased with his decision to release these boys. "Right..."

"Anyway," Ethan closed up the panel and screwed it secure in place. "That should do it."

Trent was a caged animal. He stood up, causing the Winds to flinch. They let up after he showed no signs of aggression. "Ethan, when are we going to get out of here? It looks highly doubtful that this is the time where the rift happened. Let's go."

Ethan pulled a familiar device out from his pocket, brandishing it defiantly before his partner. "All I have is the actual time travel component. Conner was holding onto the part that actually explained the proper history to us. Without all four of us together with both of them, we aren't leaving."

"Well that's a problem, isn't it?" Trent looked over Ethan's shoulder. Shane had been working at the newly repaired computer and had just swiveled around in his chair. "If the Thunder's have your friends then there isn't much that you can do about it. Thank you for fixing the computer Ethan. We really appreciate the help but we can't in good conscious risk either of you out there."

"What!" Trent's blood boiled as he held his wrist up, ready to morph. Ethan looked around unsure of exactly what to do. The Wind Rangers were nice for the most part but he still didn't even have a handle on his powers. What did Trent say when he morphed? Something about Drago power? What was that? It didn't sound like any dinosaur he had ever heard of. As fate would have it that didn't matter because before he could piece anything together Dustin and Tori were on top of him.

"White Ranger, Dino Power, HA!" Trent crashed down with sword drawn.

"Ninja Storm, Ranger Form, HA!" Red light flashed as the blade was met with another. "Damnit! He was holding out. This one's a ranger too."

Ethan's head hit the floor and he blacked out. Trent cursed Ethan's foolhardiness.

-----

"Shane Clarke, Dustin Brooks and Tori Hanson were the only three ninja students left after Lothor arrived and captured the Wind Ninja Academy, the last of all the secret ninja schools. Fate would have it that the three slacker ninja student who tried so hard to get to class on time were stopped once again by an elderly couple with a flat tire. That proved to be their saving grace." Jen's muffled robotic voice continued to play through the message. Conner and Kira listened intently, looking to pick up any clues. Their captors had left them alone for the night.

"After a brief feud with the only two remaining Thunder Ninjas, Blake and Hunter Bradley, the five students teamed up and formed the Ninja Storm Power Rangers team. Along with the son of the Wind Academy's sensei, Cameron Watanabe, the Green Samurai Ranger, the team eventually defeated Lothor and restored their school's honor."

"Just like I guessed," Kira mentioned. "Their suits are all so similar. I'm not surprised that they're supposed to all be working together."

Conner nodded in agreement but something else was clearly at the forefront of his mind. "This Lothor guy sounds important," he mused.

"Yeah," Kira nodded. "But it's strange."

"What?"

"Based on what I see, most villains tend to team up with Zordon yet even in our time I haven't even heard of Lothor. What could he be doing here that Blake and Hunter haven't even mentioned him?"

The duo continued to discuss the inconsistencies between the two timelines and possible ways to escape. Not far off a pair of glowing eyes examined the scene. It was just as he feared. These outsiders could ruin everything. Lothor had gone so soft on him. He had no choice but to abandon that fool. Zurgane's thrill for battle could not be easily contained. He didn't care for the foolish rivalry between the two ninja academies. They were just children whose squabbling didn't matter. He hoped that no one would actually win. The longer he could enjoy the battle, the better. If getting rid of these two would further quench his thirst for blood, then so be it.

-----

"Where's Marah?"

Lothor maneuvered himself carefully in the kitchen chair. One leg had a bit of a tilt to it and no one had quite gotten around to fixing it. Kapri could see the worried look in her uncle's eyes. How was this the same man that only weeks ago had such a fiery passion to destroy the entire universe? Now he seemed like a concerned parent, tending after his sickly child. Thump. Thump. Thump. His knee banged under the table anxiously. "Kapri," he begged again. "Where is your sister?"

She exhaled slowly. Staling wouldn't work any longer. "Okay uncle, I'll tell you. But you have to promise not to be mad."

"The only thing I can promise is that I will be mad UNTIL you tell me so you had better start talking."

Kapri wrung her hands. "Okay, Marah and I were talking about the ranger problem. You know, the whole 'kick punch kick punch you killed my family' thing. Which, by the way, I really think that the next time Chuubo goes for groceries he should pick up some moisturizer because ever since you've been so concerned with your brother your skin has gotten kind of..."

"KAPRI!"

"Right, anyway, the two groups seem to really only hate each other. We thought that if we could isolate one of them and get them to understand what's really going on we could put this whole thing to a rest. So, we drew straws and Marah got the short one. Well, they were both short but she forgot to ask me what mine looked like so..."

"Oh no," Lothor's head dropped into his hands. "She didn't."

"She did." Kapri cringed and braced herself as his hands slammed down on the table. Chuubo screamed momentarily from the other room before gulping and cautiously changing sensei's cool washcloth again

The short leg was the least of the chair's problems as Lothor hurled it into the wall, splintering it into jagged pieces.

"That damned, foolhardy girl! My nephew is gone and my brother could be next. I don't want to lose my niece as well!" The rage quelled as the large man collapsed to his knees. Many years ago he had tried to steal the Samurai Star amulet from his brother. He had traversed the galaxy and seen and done many unspeakable evils. But behind all of that, behind the power he held as Lothor, he was still Kiya, he was still human. His heart still ached for those that meant so much to him.

-----

"Where's Waldo? There's Waldo!"

The words still echoed in Dustin's head. Kouta had moved to Blue Bay Harbor just a month prior to joining the Wind Ninja Academy alongside Dustin. They were both placed in the earth branch based on their placement tests. Being a transfer student to martial arts was one thing. Being Japanese in California while being a transfer student to martial arts made you stick out.

"You're just a regular student? You're Japanese. Show us some kung fu, Slanty." One of the other earth students, Chase, got in Kouta's face on the first day. Dustin watched nearby looking more and more concerned as the boy poked and prodded. How someone with such a lack of manners got into the academy in the first place was still a mystery to him but clearly the selection process left a lot to be desired.

"Leave him alone. Not every oriental person knows martial arts," Dustin paced between the two. "You shouldn't believe every stereotype you hear Chase. But wait, that's not really your name now is it?" Dustin had glanced at the student roster in one of the proctor's hands just for the heck of it but now he was glad that he did. "You're Charles Jablonski. That's Polish right? I guess I should take back what I said about stereotypes. Because you're clearly an idiot."

Chase stared at Dustin for a moment, glanced at Kouta and then back to Dustin. "Whatever." He walked away. Dustin followed him with his eyes before turning around and flashing a smile as he patted the boy on his shoulders.

"Hey, I'm Dustin. Sorry about that. I guess not all of us rookies can be as smart and respectful as one would hope. What's your name?"

The boy paused, clinging to the little courage he could find. "I'm Kouta."

"Nice to meet you Kouta. Great name. I'm Waldo, I mean, Dustin. Well, my real name is Waldo but I hate it so everyone calls me Dustin."

From that point on Dustin trained with Kouta, slowly bringing the boy out of his shell. Whenever they practiced katas, Kouta's newfound habit would grow. "Where's Waldo? There's Waldo." Whenever they studied the principles of the wind and earth for a big test it was, "Where's Waldo? There's Waldo." Or just when one of them wanted to spar it was, "Where's Waldo? There's Waldo." Even as Kouta's skills grew much quicker than Dustin's both men still made time for one another. Dustin was proud to be one of the attackers when Kouta demonstrated his skills before the rest of academy during the ritual that recognized him as an elite ninja. Kouta's success was Dustin's success.

"Dustin, are these scanners working? You're supposed to be out on patrol but it says you still haven't left the grounds."

Dustin's gaze never moved off of the spot in front of him but he heard the words in the back of his mind. He absently fumbled with the morpher. "Yeah Shane, they're fine. Ethan's adjustments worked. I'm on my way now."

"Okay. Just be quick about it. Shane out."

He liked to think that on the day of the attack Kouta was the first one ready to defend his colleges. He would have been the first to fall, to die with honor. If only. Dustin had found Kouta's body right away while Tori and Shane surveyed the rest of the area, looking for any survivors but finding none. Dustin saw no wounds on Kouta's chest. It was spotless. No one ever could get a solid shot in on Kouta. Dustin could personally attest for that. But when he held his friend close, he felt the one thing he had feared as the explanation for his death. Three pincher-shaped shuriken were lodged into Kouta's back. A calling card of the Thunder Ninja Academy if there ever was one. They had attacked him from behind in as dishonorable of an action as possible.

Dustin kept them. Dried blood and all, they rested in his pocket. One each for the enemy. He would return the favor one day. The other bodies of his fallen comrades still riddled the open area around the academy's ruins. Burying them all would take too much time. But Dustin made sure that Kouta was properly taken care of. Beneath this tree Dustin returned Kouta to the earth. "Let your strength become my strength, brother. Be with me always." He kissed his fingertips and placed them to the ground, saying a silent prayer before returning to his feet and stalking his way through the battlefield.

-----

Marah had already managed to get herself turned around. Once you got passed the main section of the city and into the park the scenery took a dramatic shift. It was supposed to go from cloudy and grey to a much more lush and green backdrop. The problem being that with Zordon's forces having leveled most of the area everything was a murky brown. According to her memory or when they had first arrived she should be looking for a hill that had a steep, 100-foot drop-off. Over the years this area had become the unspoken cut off point between the wind and thunder academies. The thunders had a much higher elevation, feeling that they were closer to the sky where they could draw off the clouds that produced the power of their namesake.

In comparison, the winds liked to be closer to the ground. Water naturally flowed downward and so did the trade winds and eroded earth. It seemed to encapsulate their very ideal elements to be lower. But if you asked the thunders, that was more a symbol for their hierarchy among the ninja schools than anything else.

Marah ran her hands along the sides of her pale, cream dress before twisting a lock of her brunette hair with her left index finger. Her other hand clutched a map of the area in a death grip. It wasn't as useful as she had hoped. She knew that no general maps of the area actually had markings of the hidden academies existing.

"Well, they wouldn't be very hidden if they did." she murmured to no one in particular. Marah followed the nearby stream downhill. "I only need to find one ranger. It doesn't matter which one. Maybe this will lead me to the winds. They seemed a bit more pleasant to deal with anyway."

"Good call."

Marah spun around in fright.

"Well," the voice continued. "At least you were right about the stream leading you towards the winds. I'm not so sure about us being all that pleasant."

The man brushed back his unruly tuft of hair. Marah noted the yellow markings on his uniform. "Hi, um, you're Dustin, right?" she forced out a smile as her only defense.

"Yeah I'm Dustin. Yellow Wind Ranger. I'm the guy that has complete mastery over the earth. Dirt, trees, grass, even the soil beneath you, belongs to me. Hypothetically speaking, I could turn it into quick sand and have it would swallow you up in a matter of minutes. Again, hypothetically speaking. So please tell me why you're trespassing here lady."

"I came to talk to you about your sensei," Marah stuttered, trying to hold her ground.

"There's not much to say. My sensei is dead. I thank you kindly not speak of him." Dustin marched closer to the strange girl. Who was she anyway and what gave her the right to act so brazenly? He grabbed her arm, squeezing harder than need be.

"Did you see the body?" her voice grew sterner.

"What? No, I didn't see the body. But there were hundreds of us anyway so... no, it doesn't matter. I don't have time for games. Explain who you are now! Are you working for them? Did the thunders put you up to this? Tell me now girl."

The coolness of the palm from her free hand cracked against the side of his face producing a painful warmth as a small line of blood trickled down the side of his mouth. His head snapped back but she immediately bit it off.

"Your sensei is alive!" she spit out. "My uncle, your sensei's brother, has been caring for him for the last few weeks while you idiots have been trying to tear each other apart. He is barely clinging onto life as it is. Now I know both sides lost a lot but you didn't lose everything. However, you will if you don't put this stupid feud behind you."

Dustin held back as he gazed at the girl. This fire that she just let loose was intoxicating. He questioned her. "Your uncle is caring for my sensei? Where is he?"

"I can take you to him."

He released her arm and waved his hand before her. "Then by all means, lead the way."

-----

His eyes held onto the other man through the steel bars. Conner refused to take his eyes off of Blake. "You know, as mad as I am right now, I don't really blame you."

Kira peered up from her sitting position. She had been hugging her legs on the floor with her face buried deep in between her knees. This was going to be interesting.

The Navy Thunder Ranger stood up from his chair, arms crossed, as he moved not more than two feet away from Conner, the cool metal the only barrier between them. "This I gotta hear."

Conner smirked. "I have a brother of my own. Eric. In fact, we're twins. People are surprised to hear that he's actually more hotheaded than I am. We're always looking out for each other, me more than him because he loves to rush into things. He's a lot like Hunter in that way. You always stand back and let him take the lead, right?"

Blake exhaled as he shook his head in frustration. "Yes Conner, do you have a point?"

His smile widened even more. "Absolutely. This is what I'm trying to say. You and your brother want what's best for each other. You've lost everyone else. What else is there to cling to but each other? I get that. We both want what is best for our family. So I'm just confused."

"About what?"

"About why you can't burry your damned pride and let us go. You can't even prove that the Wind Rangers did that!" Conner gestured outside. "If you help us, we might be able to bring everyone that you love and care about back." He grabbed the bars. His voice dropped. Kira's mouth gaped open as she saw the tears in Conner's eyes. "In the world I came from I had to abandon many of my good friends and my brother. I left them to die. There is no turning back for me. We have nothing to go back to. I feel for you Blake, really, I do. But I refuse to let your damned feud come between me and a better world for everyone."

Blake paused and held his head down.

"Now please," Conner sternly added, "for me, you, Eric and Hunter... let us out."

-----

"Damnit! Damnit! Damnit!" Zurgane cursed to himself over and over again as he paced on top of a bluff overlooking the Wind Ranger Academy's territory. Things had been going so smoothly until these new kids arrived. Blake and Hunter were great warriors but their hearts were soft. It was only a matter of time until Conner and Kira won them over. He would have to act. Maybe if he could bring the battle to the thunders they would question everyone again. Something had to be done.

A flash of movement caught the corner of Zurgane's eye. He peered carefully over the side and saw one of the Wind Rangers; yes it was Dustin he noted, walking with a female. It wasn't Tori unless she had suddenly taken to wearing dresses. No, it was someone else. "Marah," he controlled his voice but slammed his fist against a nearby tree. Why was one of Lothor's weak willed nieces talking to a ranger?

A gentle hissing sound began as decompressed air shot out the sides of Zurgane's head. It looked like the results of a man with a cigarette sticking out of every opening in his face. His mask parted, revealing a tiny ant-like creature sitting inside. Tiny clamps were released as it exited the vessel, the face closing back in on itself.

"I can personally follow those two while my body handles the other Wind Rangers. I'll be damned if I let that peaceful time line become a reality." He presses a few buttons on the tiny console in front of him and the body started marching closer towards the Wind Ranger Academy while his actual form began to fly in the opposite direction, following Dustin and Marah who edged closer and closer to the outskirts of town where Lothor was still tending to sensei.

-----

"...the uprising was quickly quelled and those responsible were executed. That's all for your six o'clock news. I'm Curtis Taylor for ZNN news, signing off."

Chuubo turned the television off with disgust.

"Hey Chuubo," Kapri carefully walked into the room and sat next to the large green alien on the sofa, her arms holding fast against her shoulders. She edged closer to him. "How are doing? I thought uncle had you watching his brother?"

"He did," the creature sighed. "But he clearly wanted to be with him. He's so worried about Marah. We all are."

Kapri nodded. "Chuubo? Can I tell you something?"

This time he moved nearer to her. "Of course."

"I'm scared Chuubo."

He placed his arm around her shoulder in a friendly gesture. "Can I tell you something Kapri?" He didn't wait for her to force out an answer. "I'm scared too."

Kapri fought through the tears and smiled. "This isn't exactly what I signed up for when the idea of a fun summer with my uncle came up, you know?" She grinned. "'Why not help him conquer a few planets?' mom said. 'It'd be a great learning experience.' dad said. Now I feel so powerless. My little sister is so much better than me for going out there. I don't want to lose her, I just couldn't live with myself if that..."

The crack of wood on wood sent them both to their feet. The singsong voice of Marah hummed in the air. "I'm back! Chuubo! Kapri! Hey! Kapri? What's wrong?" Her typical mischievous grin filled out the girl's face. "You're crying. Were you worried about me?" She poked her sister's ribs who slapped the hand away quickly and dabbed the corners of her eyes with her dress.

"I was not crying. Marah? Marah who? I wasn't worried. But, um," her voice lowered and she blushed. "I'm glad you're back."

"I'm not alone..." the melodious tone continued.

"MARAH!" Lothor's voice bellowed as he stalked into the room. "I can not believe you would leave like that. I don't know whether I should hug you or vaporize you!"

Her hands shot up defensively. "Hold on uncle before you do anything crazy. I think I have the solution to this whole mess."

"You do?" he questioned. "What could you possibly have?"

"Me." A stern voice declared as Dustin paced into the room. "She brought me here. According to Marah, my sensei is alive and I want to see him. You're her uncle? His brother, I assume? Take me to him. Your niece slapped me so I'm not particularly in the best of moods." Lothor nodded and ushered the Yellow Wind Ranger forward.

**To be continued...**


	8. Justifying the Means

Authors' notes: TiC: So this is the final chapter of the Ninja Storm arc of the fic. We'll be moving on to Wild Force next. So far this was my favorite chapter to write. And even though I hate WF, I think it'll be fun to help Katie write it. If I can find interest in writing characters I don't tend to care for, that's a victory. Anyway, enjoy this chapter. Peace out.

**Chapter 8: Justifying the Means**

1"We'll be landing on planet Formicidae in a few minutes, sir," the giant green creature bellowed from the ship's control panel.

"Excellent work, Chuubo," he uttered softly from behind his mask.

"May I ask, sir, what exactly we are looking for on this planet? The system says that it's known for brilliant scientific minds, not fighters."

"I do believe that you just answered your own question." Lothor arose from his throne, moving gracefully near his current second-in-command's position. "With people like you and the limitless army of Kelzaks I plan to acquire, I will have all the brute force one could ask for. But the intelligence to formulate the weapons and battle plans I need? Ah, there's the catch. The greatest minds in the universe are on planet Formicidae and I plan to steal the greatest of the great for myself."

A few thousand feet below the space fortress Zurgane sat alone on the steps of a coliseum. He knew this time would come, he just never thought it would be so soon. But at least he had rid the world of these soft people. Granted, they were his own race and by committing genocide he ensured that after he was gone, the Formicidians would become nothing more than a memory; a footnote in children's history books.

He heard the ship land nearby and soon after the approaching footsteps. Two men. The one in front was covered head to toe in form fitting black armor with a hint of Earthling ninjetti garments. Behind him was a larger man, all green and grunting the whole way. Clearly he wasn't in charge.

"You there!" the man in black demanded of Zurgane. "Where are the Formicidians? I don't see any around. They can't be that good at hiding."

Zurgane's faceplate popped open, revealing his tiny ant-like body. Lothor's eye's widened quickly. "Actually, they all could have hidden from you if they so desired, Earthling. But you're actually right, in a way. You won't find anymore of them besides me."

"Oh? Why is that?"

"Because I killed them all."

Lothor didn't skip a beat as he chuckled and moved in closer. Zurgane responded by closing his faceplate, his robotic body stood forward. An outstretched hand greeted him.

"Well then, congratulations. I think the last Formicidian is also the best Formicidian. Natural selection, indeed. Welcome to my crew," he didn't ask but instead declared like there was no choice. Not that it mattered to Zurgane. The choice was clear.

The robotic face was stoic as he shook hands with the devil. But inside, Zurgane's smile couldn't be brighter.

-----

Zurgane wasn't smiling now. His tiny appendages maneuvered the delicate equipment of the self-propelled chair that he now sat in, gazing inside the window of this dilapidated house. Oh how the mighty have fallen. Formicidian's were a naturally peaceful people. His parents had always told him that he wasn't like everyone else. On the day he used his first set of robotic arms to strangle them both to death when he felt like they were holding back his genius out of jealousy, he was inclined to agree. Positioning himself on the window ledge, Zurgane attached a receptor to the pane of glass to listen in.

Inside Lothor was leading Dustin -- followed closely behind by Chuubo and the two nieces -- into the living room where sensei was propped up on a bed. His face was sunk in, having been able to eat only so very little, living mostly on fluids. He coughed as his eyes opened in tiny slits. The beginning of a smile formed on his lips at the sight of one of his pupils. He reached his hand up. Dustin eagerly took hold.

"Sensei! You're alive. Thank God. The others will be so pleased to hear it."

Lothor placed his hand on Dustin's shoulder. "He can't say much but from what I've pieced together he wants to know what happened to his son, my nephew, Cameron."

Dustin bit his lip and stood up, turning away from sensei for a moment. He looked Lothor in the eyes and shook his head back and forth. Both their hearts sank in remembrance.

"I... I understand..." Lothor choked. "Do you know... how?"

"The attacks," Dustin's teeth clenched together hard. "Those Thunder Rangers slaughtered him alone with the other students like animals..."

"No."

Both men bolted around and faced sensei once again as he choked the words out. Dustin was about to tell him to stop trying to talk but sensei waved him off in contempt.

"Dustin, it was Zordon. Zordon's forces. Destroyed both Wind and Thunder. You five rangers. A team."

"What are you talking about sensei? That's nonsense. They are the enemy." He clutched the old man's hand who held back as weakly as he could. The limpness in his hold made the Yellow Wind Ranger wince.

Sensei slowly reached into his pocket and Lothor did the same from his own. They each produced a tattered, spooled up ream of paper. Sensei handed his to Dustin and instructed his to hold it up next to Lothor's. With a faint golden glow, the torn ends fixed to one another. "Sensei, what is this?"

Lothor spoke up on behalf of his brother. "Dustin, this is the Scroll of Destiny. It's an ancient ninjetti relic. It was once whole but a long time ago it was split between the two main academies. Your sensei held onto his during the attacks and I'm sad to admit that I stole the other half from the Thunders many years ago and have carried it ever since. All of the things that have happened between the academies have been foretold on the scroll. But it can only be read when the two pieces are whole again. Look here. Does that etching look familiar? It's of Shane, Tori and yourself. And here is Blake and Hunter."

"No!" Dustin turned his head away. "I won't believe it. This scroll is a fraud. Why would those two pieces of garbage have any great destiny?"

"Dustin, look. It is the truth," sensei murmured through a violent coughing fit. Chuubo approached his side and held him forward to continue the conversation.

Dustin turned his attention to the middle of the scroll at his master's request. The visage of a large head surrounding an army as it ransacked the two academies was shown. Zordon. Then directly below that scene the scroll was filled with darkness; blackened and charred. "So what does that mean? Zordon destroyed our academies and then nothing? It's over? What sort of destiny is that?"

"Ah, young Dustin," Lothor smiled. "There is one more image in the bottom corner. Take another look."

He was right. There is was. Standing side by side were the forms of the five rangers sans their helmets: blue, crimson, red, navy and yellow. Lothor spoke over him. "As the legend goes, 'The might yellow earth will shake, the fiery red temper of the air with blow and the light blue waters will slosh. The crimson red sky will erupt with thunder and crash down with navy blue lightning. Only when these five elements are combined with light and dark intermingle and give forth to the clearest day."

"I never knew," Dustin gulped. "I never knew there was a second half to that. My friend Kouta told it to me while we were training. The earth, air and water. But that was it. I never knew there was more to it than that."

"You have to realize something, my boy" Dustin was in a trance, staring at the scroll as Lothor spoke, gently placing h is hand on Dustin's shoulder. "The Thunder Rangers have gone through many of the same tragedies that you have. They lost everyone who was important to them as well. The five of you are more alike than you'd care to admit. But in this darkness you five are the light. Your battles against one another are meaningless in the grand scheme of things. The only way that the rebuilding process can begin and your hearts can heal is if you five are one. Dustin, you have to convince the others. You can bring them together."

Dustin nodded uneasily and looked over to his sensei, kneeling again at his bedside. "For you, for everyone we lost and for Cam, I won't let you down."

"Like hell you won't," Zurgane snapped to himself, sickened by the whole affair. "I'm out of options. There's no way I can convince this brat that was all a lie. His companions will follow suit. I don't have the tools to stop him with just my real body. But I can definitely beat him back to his base. I have to stir the pot before then." His body began to take off back towards the Wind Academy. Zurgane made a few adjustments to the console in front of him. "Better make sure the only frequencies that pick up on this distress call are ones that I hand pick." He smiled after a moment, having successfully jammed the communication line into Shane and Tori as he spoke his message. "Help! This is an SOS from Zurgane to anyone who can hear this. I have been attacked by the Wind Rangers and am severely outnumbered. Transmitting coordinates now. Please respond!"

-----

Hunter slammed his palm down in frustration. Nothing. He had tried for five minutes straight but Zurgane's signal was cut off. Blake was eyeing Conner and Kira, mouthing something about trust. Turning away, Hunter slid his jacket on. "I wanted to send a return message but no such luck. We're going." He glanced at Conner. "We're ALL going."

"What?" Kira stood at attention.

"I want all the help I can get," he commanded. "We calm the situation and then we'll try talking to them. No promises."

Conner nodded. "Thank you."

"Conner," Kira spoke coolly out of the side of her mouth. "Why are we going with them?"

"This could be our chance to rescue Ethan and Trent. We can't do anything unless the four of us are together."

Kira sighed and rolled her eyes at the mention of Trent's name but Ethan was a good kid and she could image his fear. Who knew what the other rangers were doing to him? "Hey," the Crimson Thunder Ranger snapped. "Remember you two, I said no promises. But we'll try it your way." He tossed them each a sword. Conner held it like a bomb. Kira swung hers around a bit. She wasn't a ninja by any stretch of the imagination but she definitely had a handle on it.

"Not your first time?" Blake stammered.

"I've dabbled with a few different bladed weapons, if that's what you're referring to. When you spend everyday hiding out preparing for war with a giant reptilian freak of nature, you tend to pick up a few things."

"Oh really?" Blake's interest was peaked but as usual, Conner butted in.

"Um, no offense Blake but why do we need these? We have morphers."

"Do you know how to USE the morphers?" Blake grinned.

Conner paused, defeated and began to march towards the door. "Shut up."

-----

"...been attacked by the Wind Rangers and am severely outnumbered. Transmitting coordinates now. Please respond!" The message played again. She had it looped and every time it got to the end she giggled and squirmed with glee. She had to end her fun eventually thought and used her white-gloved hand to motion for the foot solider to take the radio away. He bowed and complied. She reached over towards another man, calling his forward.

"You." He stood firm. "Tell the emperor that I've learned of some remaining rogue ninja academy students and that I'm going to personally snuff them out. Can't have any extra pockets of resistance springing up, now can we?"

"Yes ma'am," he saluted his commanding officer and began to walk away.

"And," her voice froze him in his tracks. "Have some pikes sharpened outside the emperor's palace. His birthday is coming up next week and I plan to bring him some human candles."

-----

The explosion rang throughout Ninja Ops. Tori had easily subdued Ethan with a Japanese katahajime hold earlier so it was a simple matter to drag him over to the computer while Trent and Shane were still locked in a battle, both men morphed and not even noticing the outside disturbance.

"Find out what that was Ethan," she released the hold but before he could even think of rubbing his painful neck she quickly jabbed her middle and index fingers into his carotid artery. "No funny business."

He gulped and hit a few swift keystrokes, bringing up the main cameras. "It's the black robot thing. What's his name? Zurtan? Zoltar?"

"Zurgane. What's he doing?"

"Right. Well, simply put it looks like he's attacking the remains of the old base. Must be trying to find a way in here. He appears to be alone. I don't see either of the Thunder Rangers."

"Could be an ambush," she mused. "Either way, we need to go check. She whistled at the two men currently locked in battle. "Shane! Trent! Both of you stop! We have bigger problems right now."

Their swords clanged against each other, erupting in sparks. Both men don't want to give pause yet they both momentarily relented, keeping one eye on Tori and the other on their opponent.

"What is it?" Shane panted between each heavy breath.

"Zurgane's attacking the base."

Shane sheathed his sword. Trent did the same and Tori morphed into the Blue Ranger. "Okay, we're all going out there. Be on your toes."

"Whoa, hold on. I'm not going out there." Trent held both of his hands up, motioning helplessness before crossing his arms on his chest. "What's in it for me?" We're trying to kill each other one minute because you won't let us leave and now we're suddenly supposed to help you fight? That guy is your problem. The way I see it, if he kills you two then Ethan and I are free to go."

"We?" Ethan added with a hint of fear that no one noticed or at least bothered to acknowledge if they did hear it.

Shane pitched forward, helmet to helmet with Trent. "If he can beat the two of us alone, he can definitely beat the two of you alone. So help us and at least have the hope that you might find your friends, or don't help us and die."

"Fine, fine." Trent relented and gave Shane a hard look before turning his attention to Ethan. "Hey, you better morph."

"Um..." Ethan was sweating as his face turned red.

"You do know how to morph, right?" Trent was taken aback by utter disbelief.

Ethan wrung his hand over the bracelet on his right wrist. "Not really. You did it so fast and didn't actually teach the rest of us."

Trent sighed as he positioned himself in front of Ethan, acting as an inverted mirror. "Okay, pay attention. You summon the morpher with your own willpower. It's a part of you now and forever thanks to the gem's bonding. There is no call word for that part. Just think of your desire to use the power and the bracelet will become the morpher..."

Tori nudged Shane in the shoulder and whispered in his ear. "Bonding? Willpower? Are you sure we wouldn't be better of on our own?"

-----

"Where are those Wind Rangers?" Meanwhile, just outside and a hundred feet above Ninja Ops Zurgane had held true to his word and sped back to the ruins of the Wind Ranger's academy and reattached his real body to the mechanical one. His eyes fired lasers with pinpoint precision on anything he deemed to be suspicious. It was only a matter of time before he located the rubble that covered the hidden back entrance to the base. "Rangers! Come out. My sword hasn't tasted blood in a very long time and it hungers. Please feed it."

"Hawk Blaster!"

"Sonic Fin!"

A steady stream of red energy and rippling blue waves hit the robotic body on both sides. Zurgane was able to deflect the brunt of the attack with his swords but the impact still almost brought him to his knees. "Wind Rangers! You two can't possibly beat me on your own."

"You mean they can't beat us on their own."

The Navy and Crimson Thunder Rangers appeared via ninja streaks on either side of Zurgane. They sat both Conner and Kira down behind them. Conner tried hard to stop spinning and hold back the puke that wanted out from his stomach. Kira was more concerned with the sharp sword still in his hand, swinging violently as he tried to regain his center of gravity.

"Ah, my friends," Zurgane sounded cheerful. "Thank you for answering my distress signal. Now we can take the Wind Rangers out together while they are underpowered."

"Not a problem," Blake chuckled. "What are friends for?" He paused. "Hunter. Do it."

The older brother nodded as he jumped forward and slashed Zurgane with his Thunder Staff, sending the robotic body backwards. "What? Why? Why have you betrayed me?"

Thud. Thud. Thud. The ground shook beneath the rangers' feet. Zurgane was about to get his answer. The hums of machinery were approaching faster and growing louder. The Lion zord slowed its pace and crawled to a stop in front of the group. "Hey guys," a voice called over the speaker system as a door on the machine's left paw opened up. Five people stepped out. Or was it six? No, five people walking but one was helping a sixth who used a walking stick. Dustin walked in front, flanked slowly behind by Lothor who was holding sensei up. Chuubo, Marah and Kapri brought up the rear.

"Sensei!" Shane and Tori ran to meet him. "What's going on here? How are you still alive and who are these other people?"

"It's alright Shane," Dustin spoke in such a matter of fact and calming voice. His partners had never heard such determination echo from his voice. It was oddly unsettling yet they believed his reassuring tone. "Blake and Hunter are not our enemies. They didn't destroy our academy and we didn't destroy theirs. But," he glanced at the brothers, "you two already know that, right?"

Blake grinned. "Of course. I'm just surprised that Zurgane never figured it out. Wasn't it odd to him that we never questioned him and just took him under our wings? The Thunder Ninja Academy has a great and rich history but due to our pride we don't let many outsiders into our inner circle. Even then, there's a long grace period in which they have to prove themselves. The very first night when he shut his systems down for sleep and repairs, I implanted a tracking device with an undetectable speaker into his body." We heard every word that Sensei told Dustin. Zordon is the one who attacked both academies. But you," He pointed in accusation at Zurgane, "you were willing to let us all die as long as you got your fix. Your bloodlust is disgusting and you have no honor. You had your heart set on continuing this battle, even if it meant taking out those four strangers."

"Hey," Tori looked around. "Where are they anyway?"

"Right here," Conner smiled as he led Ethan, Trent and Kira out from the Wind's base. "Kira and I went in to get the others and we explained the timeline to them."

"Timeline?" The Wind Rangers and Lothor's group were both unsure of the situation.

"We're not from this time," Conner continued. "We're from one year in the future. I know it sounds unbelievable but thanks to a device we found in our time we were able to go backwards trying to find a disturbance in the time stream. Something went wrong and we have been charged with the task of trying to fix it. The Earth is supposed to be a peaceful place instead of being under the thumb of Zordon. And the Wind and Thunder Rangers are supposed to come together and be a team."

Lothor and Sensei both smiled at those words.

"So anyways," Ethan finished Conner's speech. "According to this device, it's scanned this era and the disturbance isn't around here so we need to make a job. There's some sort of a counter on this thing. It says we have about twenty minutes left."

"Excellent. That's more than enough time to kill you all."

There were five highly training ninja students and not one of them was able to react in time. Lothor stood in horror as the sickening liquid coughs filled the air beside him. His head jerked around only to be met with a saliva and blood combination of fluids in the face. It wasn't even until a full half a minute later that he even noticed the source of all this: Zurgane's sword.

The robotic body stood forward and laughed while examining his work. "Clean through the heart," he laughed his sick, soulless laugh, "not a bad shot." Lothor tried to catch his brother as he fell. The five ninja rangers ran up to him. It was too late. Sensei was already gone. Marah and Kapri both fainted. Chuubo missed catching them both.

"Zurgane! You bastard!" Dustin screamed and charged his opponent. His ranger suit materialized on him in mid-charge. He called forth his Lion Hammer. Zurgane braced for impact and readied a counterattack. There was no need to as a dagger flew gracefully through the air, hitting its intended target and piercing Dustin's armor. The dagger lodged itself in his left shoulder. The young man let loose a guttural, agonizing scream.

"My my my," a feminine voice mused. "What do we have here? A male Yellow Ranger. You don't see that every day."

The DinoThunder Rangers turned their attention towards this intoxicating woman. Ethan was sure he had seen her costume somewhere before. The form-fitting yellow suit was definitely that of a Power Ranger. Her white gloves and boots with diamond designs seemed classic, if not somewhat outdated. She held her helmet under her left arm. Ethan also noted the tiger-like shape of it. Her black hair was chopped off at the shoulders. It looked like a hatchet job, probably the result of the other dagger in her left hand, he concluded. She was oriental but her eyes looked slanted more from being battle tested.

Ethan saw the Thunder Rangers run to Dustin's side. Blake checked on him while Hunter stood guard, drawing a bead on her with his Crimson Blaster. "Who are you lady? I'm getting sick and tired of rangers coming out of the woodwork today."

"You and me both, little man. What are you supposed to be anyway?" she taunted. "The Maroon Mantis?" She chuckled, not waiting for a reply. "Brigadier General Trini Kwan of Emperor Zordon's Royal Guard, at your service. Now in my eleventh year of loyal service with over two thousand personal kills. In fact, a few hundred of those," she turned her gaze to the battlegrounds around her, "came from these very ninja academies."

Shane and Tori snapped out of their trance and rose to their feet. "You're the one responsible for this?" Shane spit with each syllable.

Trini laughed. "Yes, that would be little old me. Guilty as charged. What's wrong officer? Are you going to spank me?" He body bobbed back and forth as she spoke with a singsong tone.

"We're going to do a lot more than that," Dustin fought to feet, ignoring Blake's help. Trini placed her helmet back on.

"Oh lookie! Aren't I just the most popular girl in school? Four boys and some strung out bitch in an ugly light blue suit all want my attention. Well boys," her voice dropped. "Are we going to fight or are we going to dance?" Her body snapped into a fighting stance.

Ignoring their regular predisposition, the five charged as one, weapons at the ready. Trini jumped, kicking Shane's sword out of his hand with ease and dodging Blake and Tori's weapon swings so that they would hit each other. Hunter launched an attack but she avoided each blow, landing a kick square in his neck. Despite their ninja training, the Brigadier General was easily holding her own against all five attackers.

"We've got to help them," Kira cried out.

"Help yourselves first," Zurgane held his other sword at the ready and launched lasers from his eyes at the four time traveling teens. They all barely jumped out of the way in time.

"Let's morph," Trent commanded. "White Ranger, Dino Power!" His body leaped into the air and spun around, touching down and fully covered in white.

"Um, yeah. I can do that," Ethan stammered and the others watched with great interest. "Let's see, he said that I can will the bracelet to become the morpher." He closed his eyes and concentrated. To his surprise it worked. "Oh my God, it actually did it. Okay, next thing, um... White Ranger, Dino Power." He pressed the button. Nothing happened.

Trent shook his head in disgust. "You don't copy EXACTLY what I said. I'm the White Ranger. You're the Blue Ranger. You know, Tricertops." He extended his index fingers on either side of his head to mimic horns. "Not Drago."

"Well what kind of motion do you do for Drago?" Conner questioned.

"Better yet," Kira mused. "What's a Drago?"

"I asked the exact same question," Ethan chimed.

"I don't know!" Trent yelled. "Do we really have to discuss this now?"

"No, I think we've got it... Drago, yeah right," Conner got in the last word while taking a position in front of the others. "Ready?" He called.

"Ready!" the other answered.

"Red Ranger, Dino Power!"

"Blue Ranger, Dino Power!"

"Yellow Ranger, Dino Power!"

Much like Trent, the other three twisted in the air, only to land fully clothed in their ranger uniforms. Ethan and Conner momentarily admired their costumes while Kira complained that she wanted a shield too because it wasn't fair that Trent was the only person that got one.

"Call your weapons," Trent commanded, stinging Conner's pride.

"How?" Ethan asked. Almost immediately corresponding lights glowed from their belt buckles, bringing forth the Tyranno Staff, Tricera Shield and Ptera Grips.

"Cover me," the White Ranger continued as he made a pass at Zurgane, falling ahead to miss a blow and sweeping his legs out from underneath him. As the robot fell Trent slashed his across the chest with his Drago Sword.

The other three stood with their weapons in disbelief as Trent was single-handedly defeating him. "Cover him?" Conner asked. "How the heck are we supposed to do that? He's fighting the battle on his own."

Instinctively Ethan suggested that they combined their three weapons. Kira nodded in agreement and Conner seemed a bit let down by his entire first experience as a Power Ranger.

"Z-Rex Blaster!" At least, he finally got a chance to take charge. Conner's finger was wrapped around the trigger, waiting for an opening. Trent noticed them poised and ready. He turned around Zurgane and held him from behind.

"Now!"

Conner nodded. "Fire!" He yelled and pulling back on the trigger sending a multi-colored blast directly at the other two men. Trent ran away at the last possible second using the same quick attack move that he had to attack Kira during her assassination attempt on Mesogog. An explosion engulfed Zurgane.

Meanwhile, Dustin clutched his shoulder in pain, using his one free arm to take wild swings at Trini with his hammer. She merely laughed off each attempt. "Come on! You're making our color look bad."

The Thunder Rangers moved back from the fight, having noticed the DinoThunder Rangers they combined their Crimson Blaster and Navy Antler into their own combo weapon. "Shane!" Hunter cried out. The Red Ranger looked over at his darker companion and nodded, running over to his side with Tori. They combined their weapons.

"Toss your weapon over here, Dustin!" The Yellow Ranger complied and in one steady motion drew his sword so he could continue the battle. Shane locked all five weapons into place while the others steadied it.

"That's some pretty impressive hardware," Trini cooed in Dustin's ear, making sure he was fully aware that she had properly surveyed the situation. "It's a shame they won't get a chance to use it. Not as long as I'm this close to you." She swung her dagger, knocking the sword out of his hand. Her prey was defenseless. "Now what? She leaned in, their helmets touched. "You're all out of options."

"Wrong!" Dustin cried out as he tore out the other dagger that was still lodged in his shoulder. He flipped it around with his good arm and jabbed it with all his strength into her stomach before crawling away and yelling at the others to fire.

Trini staggered backwards in shock, examining the wound. She looked up just in time to see the energy blast begin to engulf her body.

Ethan jumped with excitement at the sight of the victory. The seven rangers gathered next too one another, shaking hands. "Man, that was such a rush," Ethan squealed. "The power was amazing."

Dustin opted to walk over to the fallen enemy instead of his friends. Trini was on her knees, gasping for breath and barely hanging on to life. She looked him in the eyes as best as she could through her burnt face. She sputtered for a few words. "So that's it?" She laughed with a hint of delusion. "Taken down by amateurs. What a joke. Congratulations. You get to send me back to my master like a dog with her tail between her legs."

"No." Dustin held out three shiny objects. They were the shuriken she had planted on Kouta's corpse to frame the Thunder Rangers. He dropped them in front of her and picked up his sword. "You're not going back to anyone."

They all heard the thud as the Yellow Ranger's head dropped to the dirty, bloodstained group. The limp body followed suit. Kira shielded her eyes but she had already seen what she thought would be the worst part.

Dustin calmly wiped the sword clean on his leg and placed it back in its holder. Conner was about to cry foul when he was interrupted by a mechanical scream.

"You won't bother these or any other people again either," Trent waxed and he leaped up and came down with a mighty slash, his Drago Sword cutting completely through both Zurgane's real and mechanical body, lengthwise. The two halves crumbled to the ground before exploding. Trent turned around and walked towards the group, demorphing along the way. His real mouth was as expressionless as that of his helmet.

Kira cried out in horror again.

Trent walked by Conner, addressing him but not stopping to look the man in the eyes. "Drago. An abbreviation of Dragon. A creature of unparalleled, fiery wrath. Unrelenting and unstoppable. Any other questions?"

**To be continued...**


	9. Wasteland

Authors' note: Man…..sorry we didn't update in March at all. Both have been busy with school (Jer's case) and work (Katie's case). Soooooo, to keep you all from waiting…..

**Chapter 9: Wasteland**

1Conner's hand was wrapped firmly around Trent's collar, his hand reared back, the bile trying to escape his clenched teeth; it all felt so oddly familiar. But his hand didn't make contact with the other boy's jaw. No, the other boy caught it and held him back. And he wasn't really much of a boy at this moment. He was a monster.

"Damnit, Trent!" Conner felt powerless. Why was he so good at restraining himself? Why wouldn't he just turn it loose?

Ethan was obviously uncomfortable. One of his hands was wrapped firmly around Kira's body while her tears stained his shirt. The other hand was clutching a device. "Guys." He tried to speak with some authority. They heard but didn't look. "We have to go. Now."

"No! I'm not going anywhere again with this bastard." Trent was stone-faced to Conner's words. This was to be expected.

Chuubo and Kapri were knelt before the body of Sensei as it grew colder and colder. Lothor was in shock at how truly brutal a group of teenagers - whose coming together was supposed to be the sign of better days - truly could be. And Marah? Marah was having second thoughts. Zurgane seemed to be the source of this dueling ninja academies scenario but did he truly deserve death? He was never one to be cruel towards her when they were back on the spaceship. She looked over at the other body. Female. Decapitated. The frozen, dead eyes were so different from the once cool, hypnotically chocolate ones that belonged to Dustin that would make her body tingle even when he was yelling at her. This was his fault.

The Thunder Rangers, along with Shane and Tori, said nothing. What could they have said anyway? Dustin's actions were harsh but none of them could deny the reasoning behind them. None of them could truthfully say that they wouldn't have done the same if put in Dustin's position. The way of the ninja is etched with the blood of the fallen enemy. Kill or be killed.

"Conner," Trent's tone was cold and calculated. "Let go of me." Conner complied seemingly in a hypnotic haze. "You heard Ethan. Saving the timeline is more important right now. If you want, I'll let you try to hit me again later."

----------

That was already an hour ago. Every hug between the two ranger teams was an uneasy one. The respect and admiration was there between them but for the time travelers so was the sickly taint of spilled blood. Trent merely stood by and nodded with a hint of care towards Shane who returned the gesture with a respectable nod of his own.

Even as they stepped through the portal that appeared after Ethan tinkered with the

device, Conner couldn't help but stare back at what they were leaving behind. A team

united but surrounded by death. More death than was there when they had arrived. Was it worth it? Had they done more harm than good?

----------

"Turtle Cove?" Kira questioned as she brushed a fine layer of dirt from the white and blue sign. "I think I went there once when I was younger with my family but I didn't know it even existed anymore. How far back did we go this time?"

"Just one year again. 2002."

"Ethan, we should review the history of whatever rangers are supposed to be in this time." Trent spoke with a matter-of-fact tone. "I don't want to make the same mistake that we did last time. We can't fool around sightseeing again."

Kira bit her lip. She wanted to say something. She wanted to jump in his face once again and ask him what he thought gave him the right to make any decisions. She wanted to hit him and punch him and kick him and hurt him. She wanted to. But she couldn't. Not again. Not now. Maybe not ever.

"Yeah, I think you're right." It was Conner. He addressed Trent's concerns but not directly. Every declaration that Trent made wounded Conner's pride just a little more. "We need to find the rangers of this era right away. It's best if we know what they look like." Ethan nodded in agreement with Conner.

Trent had noticed Kira's inability to meet his gaze every since he dealt the final blow. "Kira, I don't want to fight with you." Trent tried placing his hand on her shoulder but decided against it. "I know you hate me for what I did back there."

Kira just shook her head and positioned herself in between Ethan and Conner; as far away from Trent as possible.

Ethan just reached into his pocket and opened the holo-dome. "Okay. Let's see what we're up against." A familiar projection of Jennifer Scotts, the Pink Time Force Ranger, standing at attention appeared in the holo-dome. She went directly into her program.

"Approximately 3,000 years ago Princess Shayla, protector of the Wild Zords and the floating island known as the Animaria, was sealed away by five guardians chosen to protect her. An army of orgs attacked the land, led by Master Org. The guardians managed to seal him away. Presently, in the year 1981, three scientists discovered the remains of Master Org. On of the scientists, Dr. Adler, grew jealous of the relationship between his two partners. In an act of rage he swallowed the remains of Master Org, giving him the power to kill the other two scientists. He then assumed the mantle of Master Org."

"He swallowed the remains?" Conner was taken aback. "Does that mean that the doctor ate... ew, gross. I think I'm gonna be sick" He shuddered.

"No, look," Trent gestured to the projection. "They're some sort of beans."

Jen continued. "Twenty years after those events - upon the reawakening of the orgs and Princess Shayla on the Animarium - five young people were chosen to be the new guardians of the Earth. Taylor Earhardt, the Soaring Eagle joined first and over the course of a year she was joined by Danny Delgado, the Iron Bison, Alyssa Enrile, the Noble Tiger and Max Cooper, the Surging Shark. When Cole Evans, a boy who had spent his entire life growing up in the jungle, joined the team as the Blazing Lion there finally was a leader for the group and the Power Rangers Wild Force were born."

"They look weak and pathetic crawling on the ground with those primitive claws," Trent murmured, crossing his arms along his chest.

"I don't know," Conner peered closer. "That blonde chick? Taylor? She looks feisty."

"Ew," Kira shook her head in disgust. "I'll never understand men."

"Master Org awoke the legendary wolf warrior, Zen-Aku to defeat the Rangers and he was almost successful. However, Princess Shayla realized that Zen-Aku was actually Merrick Baliton, the sixth guardian from 3,000 years ago. Merrick had used the evil Zen-Aku mask to defeat the forces of Master Org but he paid a heavy price as the mask took control of him. The other five guardians were left with no choice but to seal him away. In the present day the rangers managed to free Merrick who would later join them as the Lunar Wolf Ranger."

Kira scuffed as the recording. "Can't we ever find a team of rangers without an evil member?" Trent didn't meet her eyes.

"During the final battle with Master Org the Rangers unleashed the full power of the one hundred Wild Zords. With that they finally put an end to Master Org's forces and the rangers returned their powers to Princess Shayla who left on the Animarium; continuing to watch over the Earth in case the need for the Wild Force Rangers should ever arise again."

"Hmmm..." Ethan began to fidget with the controls.

"What wrong?" Kira peered over his shoulder.

"Usually Jen says the recording is over but the system is idle as if there is more to the story. I'm trying to access the files," Ethan scrolled through the different buttons. "Here. It's some sort of sidebar."

"As the Red Wild Force Ranger, Cole was recruited for a special mission to quell a possible uprising from an old threat that had appeared on the moon: The Machine Empire."

"Machine Empire?" Ethan gulped. "They're part of Zordon's forces too. Most of them went off world to conquer other galaxies but I've seen some of those creepy Cog robots patrolling the skies in funky octopus-looking planes."

Trent nodded knowingly to himself. Seeing as how it was his job to be seen and not heard he wasn't privy to too much secret information while he was working for his father. He was the hitman. But he had heard musings from Mesogog that the other members of the United Alliance of Evil were sent across the world to expand Zordon's empire. Some say it was because of their constant petty bickering among one another and other say it was because Zordon didn't want them to have a chance to try to band together and overthrow him. Still, a few reminders of their existence remained on Earth. Cogs were still produced in Zordon's factories to perform simple tasks and to act as a strong force of manual labor.

"Ten Red Rangers from the past gathered to finally defeat the remains of the Machine Empire. The team was led by Jason Lee Scott, the original Mighty Morphin' Red Ranger and Tommy Oliver, the Red ZEO Ranger. End of file."

"Tommy Oliver?" Conner's eyes widened. Kira and Ethan followed suit. "Doctor Thomas Oliver."

Ethan verbally put two and two together. "We definitely need to find these Wild Force Rangers. Maybe this version of Cole has also met Dr. Oliver and he can help us find him."

Seemingly not phased, Trent left the others behind and began marching along the side of the road in the decayed city. The other rangers shrugged and followed closely behind, hoping that the information they had learned had helped Trent formulate a lead.

"Trent," Conner questioned after a minute. "Where exactly are you going anyway? We don't even know our way around this city. Is there something that you're not telling us that we need to know?"

"You answered your first question on your own," the boy didn't turn around. "We need to get our bearings and figure out who and what we can trust around here. We know what these rangers look like but we don't know how to get to this Animarium place. Recon is paramount right now. And no, I don't know this area any better than you do so keep your eyes open at all times."

Kira likened the remains of Turtle Cove to Reefside. Structurally, it was about the same. The same moderately large city that had seen better days. The buildings were dilapidated. That is to say, most of them were. Seemingly only certain structures were maintained properly. Kira took a mental survey she wasn't pleased with the results. The buildings that stood strong were covered in razor wire and reenforced fencing. But a local grocery store and clinic were both showing signs of collapse. The paved roads were covered in linear dirt tracks. "Tank treads," she whispered to herself; an all too familiar sign from her home. They walked for ten minutes and still no signs of life. It was as if the place was under martial law. Kira's hair brushed in her eyes. She was hit with a cool chill. Was the wind picking up?

"Get down," Trent was firm but not loud as he cautiously pulled the others behind the buildings in a nearby alley. Planes were buzzing overhead, their engines getting increasingly deafening. They were sleek and gray. Judging by the size of their afterburners they were most likely suitable for space travel, Trent noted. The air was sucked up behind them as a shadow trailing close by started to cover the teenagers. Ethan started to question if it was some sort of an eclipse but before he could get his words out his point was already made moot. The shadow was cast by an even larger vessel that landed nearby. It's massive circular structure faded in and out between being a tangible object and a green grid.

Trent grinned. "The Dark Fortress. They only bring that ship out when something major is going down. Looks like that's where we'll get some answers." Once again, he took the lead with the other following on his heels. This time, however, Conner quickly ran forward and slapped his hand on Trent's shoulder.

"Trent. The rest of us have no idea what you're talking about. What's the Dark Fortress? You need to stop making decisions for us." The shorter boy spun around.

"Well someone needs to do it and none of you seem to be thinking with a clear head. You're too busy looking at these worlds and for what? They won't even exist if we actually get our job done."

Conner spit back with venom. "We're just being cautious!"

"No," Trent brushed him aside. "You're just being sentimental and that crap could end up costing all of us our lives."

"Since when did you care about whether people lived or died, Trent? You kill someone and then think you have the right to say that? You're a hypocrite," Kira shouted from behind both of them. They paused and she marched forward, bring forth whatever courage she could muster.

He held up his hands. "I'm not going to go over this again with you Kira. I did what I felt had to be done. Maybe it was a mistake. Maybe it wasn't. I'm only human."

She looked deep into his eyes for a brief moment and then walked passed him. "Only human? Sometimes I wonder..."

Trent stood still. Ethan and Conner both shrugged and walked by; following Kira. Trent trailed behind, dejected. He couldn't help it. He'd be lying if he said that he didn't get a thrill from killing Zurgane. By all accounts, he didn't deserve any better. By driving a wedge through the Ninja Storm Rangers for his own desires he put the rest of the world in danger. But still... no. Trent couldn't think about that. He had to follow through with his word and stay focused. Looking forward he could see an entourage marching into the large ship that had landed. They were mostly clusters of identically dressed groups of foot soldiers. One seemed to stand out from the rest. The others noticed as well.

Trent piped up. "Hey. Isn't that...?"

She was wearing a green flight suit. Her voice bellowed out orders. "Squadrons A through J, march forward. Your squad leaders should have the proper orders assigning you to the Animarium Invasion Fleet!" Her blond hair was neatly tied in an efficient ponytail.

Conner watched her intently. There was a ting in his throat as his mind processed her words. "That's Taylor. That's the Yellow Wild Force Ranger. But Animarium Invasion Fleet?"

She peered around, surveying the surrounding area and receiving print outs from the lead man in each cluster. After a quick glance at each sheet she nodded and the group would then proceed to march onto the ship.

"We have to follow her," Trent held back and let Conner call out what they were both thinking. "She might lead us to the other rangers along with the Animarium."

----------

He watched the four teenagers nod to each other. Honestly, they had peeked his interest from the moment they arrived. It's not every day that you see a portal open up and have four kids tumble out of it. Saying that they clearly weren't from the area was an understatement. Their clothes were in good condition and none of them seemed to have the org symbol that was typically branded on everyone's neck in the area. Outside of himself, they were the first people he had seen like that since he got to Turtle Cove.

Oddly enough, the girl mentioned that she had been to the town before. So just who were they and why were they sneaking on the ship? What business could they have on the Animarium? It didn't really matter right now. He was going there as well and had his own business to attend to on the Dark Fortress. There was no time to lose. He made his movements with quickness and precision. Even Commander Earhardt didn't seem to detect him.

---------

The main bay of the bottom floor on the ship was pretty much an open hanger. The four teens had stuck to the side wall and found refuge behind some blue and white crates, each plastered with the NASADA logo.

"Okay," Conner whispered. "We stick together this time. We can't get split up like before." Everyone nodded in agreement. The ship was painted in dark ebony and gray hues with large, sprawling, slanted walls that gave off an ominous vibe, as Ethan noted to himself. The rangers stuck behind the cover as they snuck down a side corridor to the main hall which led to an unoccupied overhang where they could better survey the area. One thing was for sure, despite their insistence on remaining as stealthy as possible, the sound on the ship was at a constant fever pitch. There were slews of foot soldiers; most of which Trent had to identify to the others: Putty Patrollers - both the originals formed from clay and the lighter-colored, stronger variety with a distinct Z-mark on their chests, more Cogs, Piranatrons, Putrids and even Chromites.

The most unsettling thing to them was that while these foot soldiers couldn't really be classified as the living, they were not along. Amongst them was the occasional squadron of humans. Conner wanted to believe that they were being forced, or at the very least, tricked into following Zordon's orders. They wore a standard combat uniform consisting of streamlined black suits with thick gloves and boots and gray vests along with matching helmets. Each man carried a large blaster rifle. Something heavy was definitely going down on the Animarium.

"We need to find a way to move around undetected," Ethan noted. "As it is we stick out and someone is bound to see us."

"We should find some of those uniforms," Conner decided while scanning the area.

"Great," Trent perked up, hoping to unload some of his frustration with Kira on a few random soldiers as he cracked his knuckles. Kira grabbed Trent by the arm and pulled him back.

"No." She spoke simply and sternly.

"Trent?" Ethan gestured to a nearby door. The sign on the door read, 'EQUIPMENT.' Conner was already inside. Extra uniforms were hanging from racks in the room. Boots and helmets were on the top shelf. Ethan lamented that there weren't any extra guns and Trent winced with disappointment. They quickly put the uniforms on over their own clothes. Kira's looked huge on her.

"Just act natural," Conner murmured. "Don't do anything suspicious and we won't look suspicious." They only had a chance to take a few steps down the hallway before the whole ship began to shake momentarily, sending Kira and Ethan to the ground.

"Looks like we took off," Trent said as Conner helped the rest of the group get up. "No turning back from here." The DinoThunder Rangers were on edge as they continued down the corridors. They heard something that sounded like an announcement from the dull roar of a speaker coming from a room just around the corner. They peered inside. About a dozen or so of the human soldiers were sitting inside a break room. Some were sipping coffee and watching three large flatscreen monitors, all of which were displaying the same video.

The video opened with a huge explosion and a close up of a wounded, human soldier. He was clutching at his leg. Four shadows appeared above him. Red, Blue, White and Black. Conner bit his lip. They were the suits of the other four Wild Force Rangers. The voices that came from them were metallic and lifeless as they threatened the wounded soldier; saying they were going to torture him before they finally killed him. The Red Ranger drew forward his Crystal Saber and brought it down on the soldier. Just before the image of blade piercing skin could be seen, the video faded and the somber music that had been playing changed to that of the National Anthem. The United States of America's flag waved proudly, side by side with another flag that beared the same emblem of the United Alliance of Evil that Trent knew so well.

An army of monsters charged and pushed back the four Wild Force Rangers just in time. No, they weren't just regular monsters. Each of them had a horn on their head. "Charge men! For peace and unity! For Zordon! For America!" The voice was deep and throaty, forcing it's friendly tone out. The commander of the army wore a light tan robe and had a horn of his own. Master Org. "These Power Rangers," his speech had just begun. "They want to keep the Animarium for themselves. They destroy our Earth and rob it of its natural beauty so that they can be the only ones with its pure resources. They want to sell them to us at a profit to themselves. We can't let them win. We won't be their slaves!"

The teens shook their heads in disgust while the video ended with Master Org pumping his fist in the air. A few cheers rose up from the soldiers in the room. Conner backed out of the room, pushing the others along.

"They're planning to attack the Wild Force Rangers," Kira whispered.

"Did you notice?" Ethan added. The others nodded, knowingly. "Taylor wasn't in that scene. I don't like the looks of this."

"We need to get to them before these guys do," Conner said, gesturing to the room they had just come from. "This ship is going to the Animarium. Once we land we have to get ahead of them and warn the rangers... ow!"

A large, hulking figure plowed forward, knocking Conner to the side. He either didn't notice or didn't care that he ran into someone. His body was covered in sharp, black armor. He mumbled loudly to himself as he passed them by.

"Must find the Black Ranger! Must kill the Black Ranger!"

"Who the hell was that?" Trent spoke softly and slightly excited.

"So how are we going to beat a friggin' army?" Ethan questioned. "We don't know where to look once we get there and we have to find Cole first and see if he knows anything about this Dr. Tommy Oliver or if they can help figure out where the tear in the fabric of time originated."

"Tommy Oliver?" a low voice pursed behind them. "Now there is a name that I didn't think I'd ever hear again." They froze. Ethan gulped. They all slowly turned. In the middle of the hallway stood a man completely shrouded in a stark black cloak.

Trent spoke the obvious while assuming a fighting stance. He had met enough mystery men already and wasn't going to chance it again. "Who are you?"

"Don't worry," the man reached up to his hood. "I think that we're all on the same page here. I mean you no harm. But if you want to get to the Wild Force Rangers quickly, I can take you to them." He pulled the hood off to reveal his features. His hair was also black. It was short and neatly cut, contrasting the day old stubble on his face.

"My name is Adam. Adam Park. Now, what do you want to know about Tommy Oliver?"

**To be continued...**


	10. Clipped Wings

Authors' note: Finally an update! We have had real rotten luck trying to get his chapter out. TiC has been having real problems with his car and has to get a new one. Because of this car, he hadn't been able to get to the fic like he and I wanted. Sorry for such the long delay. Hopefully, the next chapter will be out as soon as we can get it to you. Enjoy!

**Chapter 10: Clipped Wings**

_Then:_

Elizabeth Adler was a goddess. Her hair, her eyes, her scent, everything about her was perfect. Yet she ignored him. Why couldn't she see that he adored her? He would make her see. He would become a God among men. That pathetic husband of her's couldn't hold a candle to him then. Did Richard really think that he couldn't see the ways that he would try to undermine him by calling the Master Org research foolish and a child's fairy tale?

It was real. If there was one thing Viktor that was sure of, it was that Master Org was no fairy tale. The overwhelming ecstasy he felt as the power coursed through him was proof enough of that. The vines grew out from his every pore and were like an extension of his body. He could feel the snapping of bones as the grip of the vines tightened around Richard's neck. And that filthy cow had the nerve to bare his demon seed. So be it. Victor would have to come to grips with the fact that she would never realize his love. He now realized that Elizabeth was never good enough for him anyway. No one possibly could be. The last thing that she would feel would be Master Org's undeniable strength.

Viktor never got to the ungodly spawn. So be it. It didn't matter. Spare the rod, spoil the child.

God, was that really already over twenty years ago? Twenty years of absolute power becoming one with him. Twenty years of sitting patiently in the Nexus, letting his human body rot away while the Master Org seeds took over and converted that fragile husk into something far more superior that would match his unbelievable intellect. Twenty years of his mind becoming one with the Org population and twenty years of gaining it all while forgetting what was left behind.

He refused to wait any longer.

"Jindrax and Toxica should have returned by now." He spoke to no one but himself. No one else could carry on a proper conversation with him anyway. But still, they were the two highest ranking Duke Orgs so they should have been the first to hear his call; drawing them back to the Nexus. Yet they still had not returned. He was going to the surface to find them. His plans would not be put on hold any longer.

A God among men is one who is unwilling to acknowledge their own shortcomings. As long as you have the mind set with a goal of total perfection, then you can achieve it. That was the one thing his weak human form of Viktor Adler had gotten right. As Master Org, he would refuse to let any human stand in his way.

The vines wrapped around each other beneath him, forming a makeshift chair as they grew and carried him up and out of the cavern that led to the Nexus. The daylight stung. The ozone layer had become far too depleted. The surface world was detestable. It stank of the human infestation. Why hadn't he ever noticed this in the past? The noxious stench dominated his senses. How could –

_You are the one that was once known as Dr. Adler, correct?_

The voice in his head was startling. The dank evil tone frightened even the Master. He tried to compose himself, rising from the chair. "I went by that name at one time. But Viktor Adler is dead now. There is only Master Org. Who dares force an audience with me?"

_Now, now Doctor. Let's slow down and collect ourselves. I'm only vaguely familiar with your story. Your goal is to rid the Earth of humans in favor of Orgs as the master race, correct?_

"The Orgs ARE the master race " He spat with as much impudence as was meeting him. "It is only a matter of time before that fact is realized by all." Master Org clenched his staff tightly, eyeing the land around him. Still no signs of the mystery person... in fact, there were no signs of any life at all.

"Over here, Dr. Adler." Master Org flipping his head upwards. A human form was kneeling on the cliff above him. A female clad in dark blue and white robes - her head seemed abnormally large - was studying him. Long blonde hair cascaded at the sides of her face. The voice that came out of the body was far deeper than any woman's should be. Much like her glowing blue eyes, it was of alien origin. She leapt down and stood almost face to face with the slightly taller Master Org.

"What are you, girl?" He stood tall but still it felt like her mere presence engulfed him. "I will not ask you again."

She giggled. The treble in her voice was maddening. Without notice she was back, camping inside of his mind. _I know you've been underground for quite some time now, but I'm sure you've still heard of me. Quite frankly - and I don't like to toot my own horn - but I don't know of any who haven't. My name is Zordon. This planet already belongs to me._

"Zordon?" Master Org sneered and began to relax. "You must be joking, girl. You're claiming to be the Emperor? I expected more but clearly you're just a very stupid, stupid girl. Most likely you're crazy. And if you were - by chance - the Emperor... then I would have to kill you. So which one of these two people do you want to be?"

She approached him more readily than ever, placing her hand gently on his shoulder and jumping back into his mind.

_I've actually gotten pretty good at this telepathic communication thing. This form is not my typical one. Truthfully, I don't have a permanent form in the physical sense, just corporally. This body once belonged to an Aquitian woman. The Aquitian people are stronger than humans. I assume that's because they live underwater and have to deal with extreme pressure. She was actually rather important; leading a team of so-called heroes that made a valiant attempt to oppose my will a few months ago. I've already burnt through all of their bodies. I decided to save her for last._

"You see," her lips began to move again. "I can only possess another body until I use up all of it's resources. Then the body dies and I must move on. It's easier than you'd think. Most of my servants consider it an honor to die as my host. But you see, the only problem with Aquitians is that they are so dependant on water. They can't stay away from it for very long without completely exhausting themselves." Her grip on his shoulder tightened.

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

Her white teeth flashed. "Simple, Dr. Adler. I've got a proposition for you since this body is nearly gone.."

"_...unless you happen to have some Gatorade... you can either join me or become my next host."_

_Now:_

"You know Tommy Oliver?" Ethan was squealing like a girl.

"Know him? No. I don't really know him; at least not now. I used to know _of_ him at one time." The man's face sank in as he talked. He had pulled the group into an empty break room, locked the door and pulled down a small curtain just in case. The group sat around the same standard issue, cool steel table that seemed to be common place around the ship. Adam sported a five o'clock shadow and stringy, black hair. The bags under his eyes sent chills through Conner; wondering just what sort of life this man had been leading and how long he had been enduring that private, personal hell. Yet Adam still managed to maintain a confidence that radiated and let rays of hope through to those around him.

Trent quickly cut to the bone. "So what can you tell us about him?"

Adam nodded. The boy meant business. He respected that. "Not much, quite frankly. I know that he worked with the original team of Power Rangers when they still fought for a greater good. He may have been a ranger himself. Back then their identities were still a closely guarded secret. If you knew who one was, that didn't mean you knew who any of the others were. I only briefly met the man. But that was about ten years ago. I'm sorry I can't be of anymore help, but honestly that's all I know."

Ethan drooped back down, disheartened. Kira tried to perk up. "So why are you on this ship anyway? You obviously don't work for Zordon. So why would you be heading to the Animarium?"

"Well, ma'am. To be honest, I've been following you since you all first came through that portal. I was on my way to the Dark Fortress' docking point when I saw a flash of light appear about a quarter of a mile away from me. It could have just as easily been some of Zordon's soldiers so I had to go check it out and instead, I found the four of you. Then you looked at that hologram thing and I wasn't sure what to make of you until you said something about finding the Wild Force Rangers. But like I said, it was my intention to board the Dark Fortress anyway. Clearly you already knew that this thing is heading for the Animarium."

Taylor's words: "Animarium Invasion Fleet" still rang through the rangers' ears.

Adam continued. "They've sent scouting ships before and I've snuck on them in the past. I know the Wild Force Rangers fairly well and bring them information and supplies. I guess you could say I'm part of the resistence." Kira smiled. "When this thing lands I plan to meet up with them and prepare for battle..."

"Battle?" Trent noticed the dough-eyed look on Kira's face as she looked at Adam. He scoffed. "No offense - I understand that you're connected to the rangers - but you're not one yourself. What's one guy supposed to do against a full scale invasion on an island?"

Conner shot Trent a stare but Adam held up his hands and begged both men off of each other. "I can understand the apprehension. But trust me, I can take care of myself."

"So if you know the Wild Force Rangers," Conner gestured behind him, out towards the rest of the ship. "What's the deal with this Taylor anyway? Shouldn't she be helping them instead of hunting them down? According to our intel, she's supposed to be their Yellow Ranger."

Adam let out an extended exhale. "She still IS the Yellow Ranger."

_Then:_

She was the most beautiful woman Taylor had ever seen. That chestnut brown hair provided an interesting contrast to the clean, white satin dress. Taylor had lost contact with the rest of her aerial unit and ended up landing on an island. But it was surrounding by so much fog she couldn't even see the ocean; let alone get her bearings. Only when she got to the edge did she realize that there was no water to see. After that, it wasn't asking too much for her to believe that this all had to be a dream. Maybe she was dead. Taylor wasn't big on religion. Maybe God was a woman that appeared from a pool of water.

'God' spoke. "My name is Princess Shayla. And you - Taylor Ernhardt - have been chosen to be one of the guardians of the Earth."

"You're a princess?" Taylor's apprehension was audible. She tried to laugh off her fear.

Princess Shayla walked as if she was gliding on some secret current of air. "Yes. I am the princess of the floating island that you are now on; the Animarium. Thanks to that yellow animal crystal that you wear around your neck, you have been allowed to find me so that you can fulfill your destiny."

Taylor's hand immediately clutched her necklace. She looked up defensively but the princess' hands were not outstretched to grab it. Instead they were already holding out two other items. The first was a jacket. It was yellow - Taylor's favorite color. She read the words "Soaring Eagle" embroidered on the back. The second item appeared to be a golden cell phone.

Accepting that crap almost two full months ago was her first mistake. "Four others," Shayla kept promising her. Her legend swore that there were five warriors to battle the Orgs. Taylor tried to laugh at herself but only spit up blood as she leaned against the crumbling wall. They were words and nothing more. Shayla had to tend her wounds on a daily basis. Words wouldn't heal a broken bone or crushed spirit. Scratch that. They weren't just words. They were more than that. They were false hope; they were lies. There weren't any Orgs. None of the monsters she battled had horns. This was Zordon's army. A damned army.

At least when she was a pilot there was job security. It wasn't so much a secret as it was the Air Force wanting to believe that they were working towards the betterment of America despite their paychecks coming from Zordon's forces. The government is probably not always going to fundamentally agree with her, but at least it felt legitimate. Who was to say some raving lunatic on a floating island with magical animals should have any more authority?

Where was her backup? A pilot has wingmen. Taylor didn't see the so-called princess ever leaving the island offer backup. She was alone. The fragmenting wall spread dust and debris off of the top of her helmet. She was alone.

"I've gotta fight..." The sword clanked against the rubble in her shaking hand. Justice was such a noble ideal. Was it also a pipe dream?

"This is it, Yellow Ranger " She recognized the deep, robotic voice immediately as belonging to one of Zordon's lead field commanders. "You're surrounded " The stark, black being waved off the Quantrons and Piranatrons with a motion from his own sword. He liked to make the final blow himself. "It's your move, girl. You can surrender and I will kill you now or you can fight and I'll kill you like a pathetic, exhausted dog. Either way, the choice belongs to you. I can have fun both ways."

"I've got a better idea." A gush of wind ripped across Ecliptor's face as the Yellow Wild Force Ranger shot into the air and suddenly descended on him, her wings fluttering gracefully. He tried to regain his bearings but the dust she had kicked up had his eyes. The mistake was his own. He had waited too long and wasn't surprised to feel his arm being twisted behind his back. He made an attempt to lean forward but found the prick of her white-gloved talons at his throat.

"So now what are you going to do, girl?" He refused to struggle. "You've got me dead to rights. I must say that's impressive. In all my years, only one other enemy was able to get the drop on me. He's dead now. But still, there's no way that you can make it out of here alive." His red eyes glowed as in a sign of victory.

"I disagree," a smile briefly formed under Taylor's helmet. Her hand dropped from around his neck and in one clean motion she shoved Ecliptor away, and held her arms up as a sign of surrender. "Power down."

_Now:_

"So," Adam paused to notice the facial expressions of the eclectic group around him. "I've told you all exactly why I'm here. Why do you care so much about Tommy Oliver and the Wild Force Rangers anyway?"

Conner nodded at Ethan who produced the holo-drome from his pocket. Adam immediately recognized it from earlier. "This is why."

Adam watched in amazement as Ethan pressed a button and the image of Jen Scotts appeared to show him an alternate world. He noticed the same four people that were in front of him, but they all looked slightly different. Conner, Kira and Ethan fidgeted in their seats when they saw their other selves. Trent was disgusted with what he saw.

"Wow," was all Adam could muster.

"That's not all," Ethan pressed another key and the video cut to the same images the teens had been viewing earlier; including the group of five Wild Force Rangers together.

After it was over Adam exhaled and Kira spoke up. "We're from two years in the future. That's when we found this. As you can see, this Tommy Oliver guy is supposed to be the fifth member of our team - but where we're from - he doesn't exist to the best of our knowledge." Kira noticed his silence. "I know it's hard to believe."

"No." For the first time since they had met him, Adam smiled. "No, it's not that it's hard to believe. I'm just excited."

Kira raised her eyebrow. "Excited?"

"Kira, I haven't had a moment's peace in ten years. That's what I've been fighting for without any end in sight. Wouldn't you be excited too if you finally found hope that the impossible peace would come?"

The white-clad boy stood up in front of Adam and looked him over from top to bottom. Conner and Ethan were ready to jump forward and hold him back. Trent extended his hand which was met with a firm shake. "Adam?" He flicked his hair back with his free hand. "I think you just finally made yourself useful."

The ship shook, knocking the four teenagers to their feet. Adam braced himself on the steel table and pulled him body towards the window. "We'll be landing soon. That means we don't have much time to beat them to the punch. If we're going to get to Cole and the others before anyone else we have to leave now before anyone else so we won't be spotted. I can get us out of her safely and take you straight to them but we've gotta get out of here."

----------

The man clenched his white-gloved fist that had been trembling in anticipation. It provided a stark contrast to the ebony fabric around his arms. The two curved tusks on either side of his visor gleamed much like the fangs on Brigadier General Kwan's yellow helmet. While she favored the more feral and sleek Sabertooth Tiger, he embodied the more no nonsense, powerful force of the Mastadon. A smirk ran across the man's face as he peered into the helmet that was sitting upon his knee as if it had a soul to call it's own. A sharp rapping at the door broke his trance.

"Sir " A thin older gentleman spoke from behind his white NASADA lab coat.

"Enter " the Black Ranger turned slightly in his chair. The scientist was flanked by two Orgs holding chains in one hand and electric cattle prods in the other. The chains were attached to the wrists and neck of a hairy, humanoid creature.

"Sir " the scientist continued. "Landing procedures are right on schedule but as some of the men were preparing for docking they were attacked and, um, mauled by this thing that appears to be of the Canis Lupus family."

"English, please," the Black Ranger maneuvered his helmet under his arm and stood to approach the creature in utter fascination.

"Um, he's a wolf, sir. Some cross between a human and a wolf."

"Then this must be the infamous Zen-Aku, I presume…" the Black Ranger circled the beast, examining him from head to toe before pausing in where he had started from. "Pathetic!" A quick kick landed squarely in the wolfman's chest. A few more kicks finally placed him on the ground. The Orgs picked him back up to his knees where the Black Ranger bent down to meet him face to face. "What were you doing sneaking on board this ship and attacking my men? Were you trying to sabotage this operation?"

Zen-Aku lowered his eyes in disgust.

"Perhaps you had me confused with a man of patience which I can assure you, I am not. Now answer me " The Ranger drove the bottom of his foot with precision once again into the wolf creature's torso until he heard the sickening crack associated with broken ribs.

"We'll stop you..." Zen-Aku spoke with a faint growl and every breath he could muster.

"From capturing your precious Animarium?" the Black Ranger scoffed in his face. "You honestly believe that your little band of misfits can actually do anything to stop us? Emperor Zordon has had his sights set on the resources that island can provide for a while now. Once the master chooses a target there is nothing you can do but sit back and wait for the inevitable."

"Major General, sir " a woman cleared her throat, hoping to gain the attention of her superior as she entered the room.

"What is it, Ernhardt?"

"Traitor!" Zen-Aku forced himself to his feet and sprung towards Taylor only to be met with laser fire in the small of his back, sending him crashing to the floor once again. The Black Ranger smiled as the smoke trailed off from the handle of his axe.

"My dear boy," He placed the flat of his foot on the creature's neck and turned towards Taylor. "Now what was it you had to report before you were so rudely interrupted by our friend here?"

"The Black Astro Morpher is missing from the cryogenics lab, sir " her lips quivered. The Major General paused, unresponsive. "I'm sorry, sir….but…"

"But….." The Black Ranger took his foot off of Zen-Aku's throat and calmly walked to within an inch of Taylor's face. He grabbed her by the hair and slammed her into the wall. A dull twing of metal shook the room. "'But' is an excuse. I'm not looking for excuses. Excuses get people killed So instead of coming up with 'buts," you should spend your time finding the Master's lost property "

The scientist tried to lift Taylor to her feet. She pushed him off with one arm and clutched her head with the other. She nodded and quickly stumbled out of the room.

"Cell Phone Org " The Black Ranger directed his attention to one of the Orgs restraining Zen-Aku. "Have the Black Psycho Ranger report to me immediately. I have a little bit of a hunting expedition in mind for him. His one-track mind will finally prove useful." Cell Phone Org nodded and rushed off.

"Camera Org, take Zen-Aku to the interrogation room. I'm going to make this dog speak."

"Right away, sir " Camera Org bowed and pulled Zen-Aku out of the room. The scientist followed leaving the Black Ranger alone. The visor cracked as he slammed the helmet to the floor. "Park, what are you up to this time...?"

----------

Adam had silently motioned the rangers passed a unit of soldiers waiting in the hanger. He gestured towards the emergency evacuation tube that he had described to the rangers in their meeting room. One by one they had all dashed towards it and dove in. Kira and Ethan jumped into together. She forced him not to scream by clamping her hand over his mouth as they slid out through the bowels of the ship towards the lush canopies of the forest.

"OhGodOhGodOhGodOhGod..." Conner cried out as he rapidly approached the trees. "Adam! I thought you had a plan..." The wind left Conner's lanky frame thanks to a jolt from his sudden stop. His eyes refused to open. "Are we dead yet?"

Trent scoffed. "Honestly?" Conner slowly peered out of his left eye only at first. Trent was casually sitting Indian-style with his arms crossed as well, not even bothering to glance back. "Someone want to remind me why exactly this guy got the red suit again?"

"Where are we?" Conner spun around. Adam placed his hand gently on the Red Ranger's shoulder.

"Don't worry, man." He gestured around him. All five of them were safely on a giant red bird that was soaring just below the tree line. "The Falcon Wild Zord picked us up. We'll be there in no time and you can ask Cole about Tommy." Adam and Kira exchanged pleasant grins.

"Well," she chimed. "We couldn't have asked for a better taxi."

**To be continued...**


	11. BlackOnBlack

Authors' Notes: Oh woah! An update! We both have been having many problems as of late trying to find time to work on this. Hopefully, the updates will be more frequent. And we hope to keep TIC sane. Poor Jer. Anyway, here we go!

**Chapter 11: Black-on-Black**

He brushed the hair out of his eyes after turning his face away from the crackling ashes. The Animarium was a beautiful sight but its climate left much to be desired. The island had an amazing ability to adapt to its surroundings to maintain the typical vegetation of an African jungle. A floating island such as it was susceptible to the cold and harsh winds of the sky. It wasn't natural. Adam still couldn't understand it no matter how many times it was explained to him. He fastened another button on his black and green flannel shirt and began to stoke the fire.

"You're going now." It was a statement rather than a question.

Zen-Aku paused behind the man who was furiously searching through his available stack of logs. The wolfman's head drooped momentarily. "Yes."

"You should stay. They're only kids, you know." Adam futilely poked at the embers. A momentary flame lit the wolf's face against the moonlight as he sat his blade down before resting his hulking frame on a larger log. Even through the darkness he could read the concern in the human's eyes.

"They held their own against me in a real battle many times. They'll all make fine warriors some day. They don't need me." Zen-Aku thought back to the day that he awoke mere months ago. Adam had already heard the story three times so it didn't bare repeating. From Zen-Aku piecing together his fragmented mind more and more it seemed that Master Org was attempting to strengthen his forces by releasing his greatest Duke Orgs. Whether this was for his own purposes or to support the Earth's Emperor, that was never clear. The Duke Org Nayzor had found the wolf's tomb and attempted to bring him into their fold.

Adam placed his hand on the wolf's shoulder. "You're right. They will make fine warriors... some day. But that day is not quite here. Right now they still need guidance. A few months ago you were still entombed and unaware of your surroundings. A few months ago two of those kids were going to school and they were all living powerless in fear. Instead of Shayla's one thousand years of quiet civility maybe they could use one thousand years of a real warrior's experience?"

"Adam?" Zen-Aku rose to his feet. "Please don't try to guilt me into staying. It does no one any good. We both know that there's a war coming. This damned mask makes me want to kill those kids every second of every day just because they hold the animal power. I fight that urge because I know that protecting the Animarium is paramount. I can't promise that I will always be able to hold back. For now, I have faith in them and faith in your watchful eye. That will just have to do."

"Tomorrow will be the full moon," Adam spoke knowingly. "Will you be okay in your human form?"

Zen-Aku rose to his feet. "Okay?" He questioned with a laugh. "My human form is when I'm at my best." He walked away once again; this time his hesitation was gone. Adam called out to him; the desperate plea was gone from his words. "Where will you go?"

"I'll protect this land from afar. You told me yourself that Zordon's forces were setting their sights on this island."

"And if they need you?"

"I'll be here." The wind kicked up; carrying Zen-Aku's voice away. Adam winced and looked for the warrior. He knew it was pointless. Zen-Aku was already gone.

-----------------

The soft, rhythmic clacking of the creature's approaching black boots on the steel-tiled floor was quickly drowned out by the voice of his commanding officer.

"Psycho Black " the voice of the man in the equally dark outfit tinged with vile and anticipation. Psycho Black held back his own words from the smaller man. Just the idea of another ranger - a black one at that - being able to pull rank on him was enough to send him stampeding like a bull seeing red; or of course in this case, black.

As the door slide back into an airtight lock the Black Ranger quickly managed to compose himself. "I called you here because I have reason to believe that due to recent incompetence on this airship, a perfect target has revealed himself; suitable for your area of expertise."

"Black Ranger..." Psycho Black mumbled against the Major General's words and stared at the ground.

The Power Axe materialized in the Black Ranger's hands with the blade lined up along the throat of his subordinate.

"Please direct your attention to me when I'm speaking," Psycho Black remained steadfast in his lackluster consideration. "The Astro Morpher has been stolen."

Those few words immediately jarred the warrior to attention; increasing his vocabulary exponentially. "Well, that's rather exciting for me, isn't it?"

The Major General flashed a toothy smile. "Just the reaction I was hoping for out of you. The man who took it is most likely headed towards the Wild Force Rangers... including the BLACK Ranger. Track them to their base. Commit its location to memory. You may destroy the Wild Force Rangers. But I'm saving the man who stole the Astro Morpher for myself."

The monster growled like a feral cat not wanting to share his food. "Fine. I'll bring him back alive but I can't promise what sort of condition he'll be in."

"That is all I ask."

-----------------

"We're landing." Adam spoke sternly as the Falcon Wild Zord coasted below the trees and out towards a clearing. Ethan quietly complained to himself about twigs in his hair and was promptly ignored. From above Trent could tell just how brilliant of a strategy it was to locate a base here. Unless you were directly above the clearing there was enough overhang from the trees to completely shroud the small, open expanse.

Adam helped Kira and Ethan dismount from the great bird. Conner and Trent jumped off themselves, grateful to be on the ground again. "Judging by the stone columns," Trent pointed to the edge of the clearing. "This area is actually a courtyard of sorts and a larger structure is hidden in the deeper foliage." Adam nodded with a grin. "Brilliant."

"My, aren't you the clever young man?" The teens sharply focused their attention on the velvety smooth voice that echoed from the stone columns Trent mentioned. They indeed provided a well-covered entrance to the temple. The woman's chocolate-colored hair bounced as she walked. She was flanked by a burly man with glasses in a dark t-shirt and vest. His arms were crossed but Trent could tell that his guard wasn't down in the least. The Princess' hands were tucked deeply away in the folds of her white dress until she greeted Adam a hug.

"Princess," Adam bowed slightly before accepting the more friendly gesture.

Kira was sure that it was the same princess from the recording and judging by the cautiously optimistic look on Ethan's face she wasn't the only one that thought so. Kira then turned her gaze to the man behind her and immediately was validated in her assumption.

Shayla's voice sunk to an octave that would be normal for most - but in her case - was only reserved for grave moments. "It's good to see you again, Adam. But if you're here and you've brought visitors than that must mean..."

Adam nodded, confirming her fears. "They're landing as we speak. We flew here directly and it still took us a good 45 minutes. I'd say with them being mostly on foot and not knowing exactly were to go, we've got about five hours tops; six if we're lucky."

The man with glasses - Kira was sure his name was Danny - said nothing. He was pursing his lips and frequently glancing towards the ground; clearly trying to silence his fear.

"If you don't mind me asking," Princess Shayla turned her focus on the time travelers. "Just who exactly are your visitors?"

Adam calmly grabbed Conner by the wrist and held the boy's arm up, focusing the Princess' attention on the bracelet. "Consider them reinforcements... from the future."

Trent brushed Conner aside and looked both Shayla and Danny up and down. "We're here to help you. But before Zordon's forces get here we need to talk to Cole Evans."

"Cole? What do you want with Cole?" Danny still didn't know what to make of these teens. He trusted Adam and if he brought them then they were probably on the up and up. But why would they be Power Rangers too? His team were the only morally sound rangers that he knew about. His mind raced with the possibilities of just how many ranger teams there could actually be.

Kira ran up and pushed Trent back. She momentarily locked her eyes with his just to shoot a few daggers. Her rosy complexion returned and she flashed a smile at Danny. "Adam is telling the truth. We really are from two years in the future. We're looking for our teammate and Cole might be the only person here that would know him."

"Who exactly would that be?" The DinoThunder teens recoiled as a man touched down in front of them, firmly planting his bare feet. Trent cursed himself for not sensing him in the trees earlier. He secretly blamed the high elevation for dulling his senses. The man wore a tattered red shirt, cut-off blue jeans and his long hair hung over his eyes.

"Good God," Trent mused. "You'd think I would have at least smelled him coming."

Ethan had pulled the Holo-dome out from his breast pocket and glanced at the Sequencer. Whatever he saw clearly made him uneasy and Conner seemed to be the only one who noticed. He played it off. If he wasn't sharing he decided not to speak up quite yet. Ethan quickly replaced the Sequencer in his shirt and focused everyone's attention on the Holo-dome. It displayed a quick rundown of the supposedly correct Wild Force time line that was much more peaceful than their current surroundings; very reminiscent of what was shown to the Ninja Storm Rangers.

"Here Go to a more detailed readout Ethan," Conner pointed out the same area near the end of the recording. Ethan nodded and fine tuned the display. The Red Ranger mission on the screen was subtitled "Forever Red."

"This is the guy we are looking for," Conner pointed at a man in a leather jacket with a stylish, short haircut. "That..."Ethan paused the recording, "...is the Thomas Oliver guy we're looking for."

"That's me talking to him," Cole whispered the obvious that was everyone's focus.

"Is there any chance that you've seen him?" Kira begged.

Cole shook his head back and forth. "No, I'm sorry but I haven't. But, wow. That was me."

The teens were clearly dejected. "Now what?" Ethan posed the question to no one in particular.

"We prepare." Danny stepped forward and Trent nodded in agreement.

---------------

Then...

They could have stopped him but simply chose not to. Even as the rod pierced his enemy's heart they did nothing. Psycho Black was beginning to think that he'd fit in with his new teammates perfectly.

"Congratulations," the Red Space Ranger scoffed.

The Yellow Space Ranger began to shriek.

"Sorry Ashley." The Blue Space Ranger apologized profusely. He had yanked his axe free and Psycho Blue's head rolled on the ground; stopping only when it bumped into Ashley's foot.

"Gross, gross, gross " she cried.

"Damn Ash, chill out. It could be worse," the Pink Space Ranger unlatched her helmet, revealing flowing hair of the same color. She gestured towards the body at Psycho Black's feet. "At least you're not Carlos."

"You're sick, Cassie Poor Carlos..." Ashley had dropped to her knees. After all this time Cassie still never knew what to say when her friend got like this. One minute she'd kill anyone as ordered like she had Psycho Yellow and the next minute she'd be completely oblivious to her actions.

"We all signed up for this." Cassie set to work on Carlos' belt to make his suit disappear in order to retrieve the Astro Morpher for her master. She didn't skip a beat. "Zordon said that any five of us on the same page was a stronger team than all ten at odds. Us four Space Rangers won our battles. If Carlos couldn't cut it then it's his own fault. No skin off my back. As long as I'm still around that's all that matters. He clearly didn't deserve to live."

She successfully pulled the morpher off; noting that Carlos was already beginning to stiffen up. Cassie paused to hook the morpher on her own belt before moving closer to Psycho Black. "Now we've got to deal with Mr. Broody here."

Ashley was still wiping her eyes. Cassie rolled her eyes and sighed. "Besides, if Psycho Black didn't kill Carlos, I'm sure that Andros would have eventually. Carlos was always hitting on you Ash. You even told me yourself that he creeped you out all the time."

Ashley mumbled through her tears. The others weren't sure what she was saying. All they could make out was something about how Carlos was nice to her in high school. She could vividly remember watching him on the soccer field while she headed up the cheerleading squad. Back then she saw the passion in his eyes. For that brief period of time that they played soccer, no one thought about the war on the horizon that would lead to Zordon's eventual takeover of the planet.

Was she selfish for turning her eyes to another man? They gained those powers and things changed. Well, they changed. She kept telling herself that. But she didn't change. Right? She loved Andros. It's not that she didn't love Carlos. She just wasn't in love with him. Ashley couldn't control her heart's actions. Black was commanding but you always knew where it stood. Red could still have that dominating presence about it but there was also always that little added bit of mystery which was just so damned intoxicating...

"Ash, let's go."

His arm was gently cradling her. She nodded but didn't turn away from Carlos' lifeless body. Ashley allowing him to help her to her feet and guide her away from the scene. Maybe they had all grown more aggressive. It couldn't have been all bad though. The Psychos showed up soon after they had gotten their powers and by comparison, Ashley's team must have been seen as being rather tame. They could turn into actual monsters. Ashley was pretty sure that her powers wouldn't let her do that.

She clawed at her helmet, desperate to get it off. She had to see. She had to make sure.

Andros grabbed her hands and held her close to his frame until her body relaxed. "It's okay, I'll take the helmet off for you." He unlatched it. The second it was off Ashley raced to a nearby mirrored wall. "You're just under a lot of stress, hun."

Normal. Two human eyes. Two human ears. A human mouth and a human nose. She was normal.

Her boyfriend handed her a tissue and kissed her forehead. Psycho Black leaned against the wall, reflecting his form against the others walls. Ashley shivered. T.J. and Cassie were whispering to one other, looking back and forth between the Psycho and Ashley. She didn't know what to think about that. But she did know one thing for sure. No matter what, she had to get out. Soon.

--------------

Now...

"We've got to get out of here soon," Trent rested his index finger on the map in front of him.

"We can't abandon the Animarium " Max's patience were wearing thin. It was great that these rangers Adam had brought were so willing to help but the white one wanted to call all the shots. "Let's just use a surprise attack." Max remembered that Zen-Aku had taught them all so well how to sneak up on the enemy.

Trent's eyes betrayed him as a clear display of his lack of patience. "A surprise attack? Really? That's your best suggestion? Tell ya what kid, I'll start listening to your surprise attack plan on the same day that everyone on my team decides to start wearing color-coordinated safari jackets with our dinosaur names sewn on the back, okay?"

Max fell silent. He knew he shouldn't have said anything. A large hand rested on Trent's shoulder. The same wall of a man from earlier made his presence known. His presence could intimidate just about anyone. "Ease up, man. Max is just trying to help. Please, just continue with your plan."

The White Drago Ranger shrugged him off as best as he possibly could. "Yeah, well, how about you take the energy drinks away from the hyper kid? It's not like I'm talking about abandoning the Animarium. I'm just saying that we need to lead Zordon's troops away from here without making it obvious. You've all mentioned something about this being sacred lands that controls the island, right?"

Danny nodded.

"Well," Trent was trying his best to remain calm. Never had he had his battle strategy questioned this much in the past. First Conner and now it was getting to be a nasty habit that everyone was taking advantage of, it seemed. "If we hold our ground a few miles south of here then we might be able to keep them away and prevent direct damage. It should give them the impression that we're directly guarding the base of operations there."

Trent was hoping that this wouldn't become a trend. If this was what it took to get Kira off of his back it didn't seem worth it. Compared to the last set of rangers, this group seemed like children. The others were much harder individuals. Trent surmised it was due to them living under harsher conditions than their counterparts from the supposed correct reality. This group was soft. Adam had sworn on his life that they were more than properly trained for the upcoming battle. On top of that, his own team didn't seem to be of much help. Instead of working on strategy, Trent could hear Kira and the girl on the Wild Force Ranger team were just prattling on about nonsense.

Alyssa seemed like the most normal of the bunch. The others were far too untrusting. Kira was so glad to finally find one normal person among the bunch; someone that reminded her of what life used to be like.

Both girls were hugging their knees and sitting across from one another on a large, flat rock. Kira was probing the girl for personal information. It was something that she had wished she'd taken the time to do with the Wind and Thunder Rangers. Inside, they were all still people. She had to remind herself of that every time she was reminded of Dustin.

"What was your dad like?"

Alyssa flashed a sly grin for a moment but quickly stopped almost as if she was scolding herself. "My dad is the one that taught me all I know about martial arts. He said that it was going to take me far in life."

"It does seem to be helping you."

Alyssa reluctantly nodded. "I wanted more out of life though. No one in my family ever went to college. My dad said it was a waste of time. 'Why train the mind with books when you can train the mind, body and spirit?' he'd always say. I agreed that my body was strong but I knew that my mind could take me even farther. I saved up and was going to go to college against his will."

Kira asked her next question even though she was afraid as to where the conversation was going. "So what stopped you?"

"The war. The college I was going to go to doesn't exist anymore. Instead of going to class the university was destroyed to make room for a military base. That same day this gem I've always had began to glow and the Tiger Wild Zord showed up to take me to the Animarium. I bet no one else has ever had such a horrible first day of class." She smiled through the tears.

Kira was ready to hug her but something held her body back. She told herself that she never really was one for hugging even when it was exactly what a person needed.

Conner could see them out of the corner of his eye but was far too focused on what Ethan was telling him to get involved. He had questioned Ethan about his earlier reaction to the Sequencer as soon as he could get him alone. The counter displayed a large number two in LED lights followed by two zeros. The Red Ranger was fixated as the numbers continued to descend.

"Conner, we only have two hours left according to this thing. If we don't leave by then something bad will go down. I'm not sure exactly what but I'm willing to guess that we'll be stuck here."

Conner acknowledged Ethan but he couldn't help questioning him even more. "Ethan, we had a lot more time left with the Ninja Storm Rangers. We had days! Why do we only have less than one this time?"

"I honestly don't know. It could be any number of reasons," Ethan had already been running down a list of possibilities in his head. "Different polarities or frequencies in this universe could be interfering, we could be hurried along with a finite period of time to fix the tear or..." he trailed off.

"Or what?"

"Well," Ethan looked around to make sure no one else was listening. "Let's just assume that this history is set in stone until we change it. The device would know what is supposed to happen here if we don't intervene. It could be protecting us from something. Maybe some sort of cataclysmic event is going to happen in two hours and it has to get us away before then in case we fail."

"Cataclysmic event? Like the Wild Force Rangers losing and Zordon capturing the Animarium?"

Ethan didn't answer which was answer enough for Conner.

"I'm going to tell Kira and Trent. There's no need to get the others worried. We'll stay and fight for two hours and win."

"But Conner," Ethan could see the look in his eyes. He wanted to talk some sense into the Red Ranger. But Ethan wasn't even sure of what would happen himself. Did their actions have any baring at all? Maybe the Ninja Storm Rangers were still stuck the same way they were before they had arrived. Maybe unless they actually found Oliver nothing they did really meant anything. "Fine. We'll stay and we'll win. But two hours is it, Conner. We can't stay any longer --"

Ethan jumped at the sound of the scream. For the second time in one day Trent hated himself for not sensing a possible enemy. In hindsight, he was at least aware enough to make a move before it was too late. The same couldn't be said for the man that was laying on the ground. Danny screamed. Trent recognized the attacker from the ship.

"Psycho Black..."

Trent noted the lance that was pressed against Danny's sternum. The Psycho had him in checkmate. If Danny made any sudden movements the lance could collapse his lungs; killing him instantly.

"What was that you were saying?" His laugh was even more sickening coming through the metallic helmet. "You most definitely cannot stay any longer. In fact, you've all overstayed your welcome." Ethan and Conner held up their wrists. Trent shook his head. If they tried to morph Danny would be dead long before they got to him.

"I made one promise today," Psycho Black's chuckle plowed through his words. "I promised that I wouldn't kill whomever had the black Astro Morpher. This one is the only guy here that stinks of Black Ranger powers. You know, I've never been very good at keeping promises..."

To be continued...


End file.
